Netanyahu asks MP Ronen Bar's to serve as interim head of Shin Bet

A day after reversing his controversial decision to appoint former Admiral Eli Sharvit as head of the Shin Bet, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided on Wednesday to appoint the deputy of Ronen Bar, the recently dismissed chief of Israeli internal intelligence, as interim director until an official new replacement is appointed, according to media reports.

The name of this MP is not known, with the media only referring to them as the initial "S."

According to i24 News, the prime minister justified this decision by explaining that it will not be materially possible to validate the appointment of a new Shin Bet director before Ronen Bar's actual departure on April 10, as this process must be approved by a specific committee. The executive chief announced that he would continue to interview candidates for the position.

Like the aborted decision to place Eli Sharvit, the appointment of an interim director goes against the Supreme Court's order on this matter, the media continues.

The Israeli prime minister is engaged in a standoff with the Supreme Court, which has frozen the government's decision to dismiss the current Shin Bet chief, following the arrest of two of Netanyahu's advisers amid suspicions of bribes received from Qatar. The head of government is set to fly to Hungary Wednesday evening.