The decision to dismiss Ronen Bar, head of the internal security service Shin Bet, was made on the 20th of March.
Benjamin Netanyahu had a conflict of interest at the time due to Shin Bet's ongoing investigation into the Prime Minister's aides' connections to Qatar and suspected bribery, the Supreme Court announced on Wednesday. Bar did not even receive a proper hearing before the dismissal.
"A flawed and illegal process" lay behind, according to the court.
The court's decision comes after Israel's government revoked its decision to fire Ronen Bar in connection with his announcement that he would leave his post on the 15th of June.
State Attorney Gali Baharav-Miara announced in a statement that she is now blocking the government from appointing a new Shin Bet chief until "guidelines are established to ensure the integrity of the process, AFP writes.
Netanyahu and Bar have a history of disagreements.
Bar has previously accused Netanyahu of demanding personal loyalty and obedience. The Prime Minister allegedly demanded that Shin Bet use its espionage apparatus against government-critical demonstrators, according to a written statement to the court.
According to the Prime Minister, the whole thing is about the government lacking confidence in Bar after his "complete failure" during the Hamas terrorist attack on October 2023.
Shin Bet has taken responsibility for the intelligence failure surrounding the attacks in a report, but also criticized the political leadership.
