Netanyahu may not fire Shin Bet chief for now, Israel’s high court rules
Israel’s Supreme Court has dealt a blow to Netanyahu’s efforts to fire the head of the internal security agency.
In an interim injunction, the court said Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar must remain in office until further notice while the government and the attorney general’s office hold talks to reach a potential agreement.
The government may not, for now, take any action against Bar, including announcing a replacement for him, and must not block his authority as the head of the security agency, the court ruled.
Israeli reservists organise effort to oppose Gaza military service
A group of Israeli reservist soldiers have been trying to organise an effort to express their rejection of continued fighting in the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media. The reservists are arguing that renewed fighting in the besieged enclave is for “political reasons”, Kan national broadcaster, Times of Israel and other media reported.
Hundreds of air force reservists have reportedly been planning to issue a public letter calling to stop serving, but Israeli Air Force chief Tomer Bar and army chief Eyal Zamir have been trying to stop it from being published. The text of the letter has not been publicised.
When PM Netanyahu was originally trying to push his judicial overhauls, many reservists, especially those in the air force, were among those who refused to serve.
Israeli air strikes target Bekaa Valley in Lebanon
The Israeli army has targeted Bekaa Valley in northeast Lebanon, claiming to have hit “a weapons depot belonging to Hezbollah’s air defence system”. It said the site used by Hezbollah to store weapons constituted a “threat to the state of Israel and a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon”.
Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) also reports an Israeli air strike in the Baalbek region, also to the east and far from the border with Israel.
