Netanyahu claims Shin Bet chiefs are blackmailing him as Ex-director threatens to expose damaging secrets if PM breaks the law

Israel’s political crisis deepened as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Shin Bet director Ronen Bar of “blackmail,” escalating an unprecedented feud between the country’s leader and its security service.

Netanyahu’s allegations come after former Shin Bet chief Nadav Argaman warned that he holds compromising information about the PM, which he will release if Netanyahu “acts illegally.” In a bombshell interview, Argaman accused Netanyahu of funnelling Qatari money into Gaza, enabling Hamas’s military buildup—a claim Netanyahu has denied.

The feud has intensified amid a police investigation into alleged ties between Netanyahu’s inner circle and Qatar. Reports suggest members of the PM’s office may have received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Doha. Netanyahu, who has been trying to remove Bar, now faces accusations that his government could be compromised by foreign influence.

Bar, refusing to step down, has denied Netanyahu’s claims, insisting he is focused on national security and the effort to recover hostages.

As the scandal unfolds, Argaman has warned that Netanyahu’s moves to replace Bar could lead to a dangerous politicisation of Israel’s security services, heightening fears that the country’s intelligence apparatus is being dragged into a power struggle.

With Netanyahu’s survival on the line, Israel’s most powerful institutions are now in open war.