The leading candidate of the political echelon to replace Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) head Ronen Bar is M., his former deputy, Kan 11 News reported on Tuesday.
According to the report, M. retired from the organization a few months ago and was brought back as the Shin Bet representative in the negotiation team for the hostage deal, following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to remove Bar from the team.
The decision to appoint M. was made with the agreement of both the Prime Minister and the head of the organization. As part of his role, he participated in all the security meetings which dealt with the negotiations for the release of the hostages and the Gaza arena.
According to the report, M. is considered a respected figure in both the political and security echelons. He advanced in the Shin Bet as a field coordinator and became one of the experts on all matters related to the Palestinian Arab arena.
However, sources familiar with the details told Kan 11 News that one of the concerns of the legal advisory team and the Shin Bet is that Netanyahu might choose an external candidate for the role of head of the Shin Bet.