Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday that he has reached an agreement with IPS Commissioner Kathy Perry that she will end her term and help locate her replacement.
The continued service of the IPS commissioner was at the center of a significant political controversy. Minister in charge Itamar Ben-Gvir decided not to extend Katy Perry's service, after which she publicly criticized him. Minister Benny Gantz objected to Ben-Gvir's termination of Perry's service, in light of the agreement he signed with Prime Minister Netanyahu according to which the roles of all senior officials in the public system would be extended during the war.
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Sources in the state camp told Israel Hayom that Minister Hili Tropper submitted a resolution to extend the term of the commissioner along with the extension of the term of the police commissioner. The sources said that Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs refuses to put the resolution to a vote in the government.
A statement issued today on behalf of the prime minister said that "in light of the many challenges facing the organization, the prime minister sought to act in order to preserve the organization and in the national interest of the country."
The Commissioner expressed her willingness to leave her position at the end of a full term of 3 years in which she served in the position.
Sources in the state camp accused Fox of preventing the resolution from proceeding. Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs, Photo: Jonathan Zindel/Flash 90
The Prime Minister asked the Commissioner to bring her experience and assist the Minister's acting nominee in carrying out a professional and orderly overlapping process.
Senior IPS officials said in response to the agreement between Netanyahu and Perry that "the lynching that the IPS commissioner was forced to undergo last month by Ben-Gvir "hurt an officer who served in the security establishment for 36 years" and that "the prime minister's announcement that Ben-Gvir will consult with the commissioner regarding the identity of the next commissioner is sowing sand in the eyes."
Ilan Burda, former head of the intelligence division at Sheves Gondar, said: "It is sad that the commissioner is ending her position like this after three years. The Israeli government would do well to appoint its deputy to take its place. This is the right thing these days for the country and the organization."
The remarks by retired Gondar Burda come against the backdrop of concern among past and present IPS officials that the person who is supposed to lead the IPS these days is Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi, a police officer with no professional experience in incarceration.
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