Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who is staying in the USA, responded this evening (Tuesday) to opposition leader Yair Lapid, who called Smotrich’s visit to the USA “embarrassing and shocking”.
“In the pages of the history of the State of Israel, you will only be remembered as the one who did everything to lead us into a civil war. You also tried to recruit American Jews for your BDS campaign against the State of Israel. We will not allow you to succeed. We will mend the fractures, heal and unite, we will fix what needs fixing in our beloved country, and we will leave you disgruntled to shout at the opposition for many years,” Smotrich responded.
Earlier, Lapid welcomed Prime Minister Netanyahu’s directive published on News 12 that government ministers will not be allowed to travel to the United States as long as Netanyahu himself does not travel and is not invited to an official meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House.
Lapid said: “Netanyahu instructed the ministers not to meet with the Americans until the US president invites him to the White House. After the shocking embarrassment of Smotrich’s visit – an excellent idea.”
Ministers who do fly to the US, will not meet with American government officials, just as happened to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotritz, even before the government itself disowned him. The only minister allowed to fly to official meetings in Washington is Ron Dermer who serves as a kind of messenger on behalf of the Prime Minister.
Earlier, Lapid attacked the government that sent Israel’s ambassadors in Europe a message sheet to repel international criticism of the legal reform ahead of a debate that took place today in the European Parliament.
“The directive in which the ambassadors were asked to deliver a message sheet regarding the coup d’état – which is at the center of the fierce and destructive political dispute in the country’s history – is a blatant deviation from the definition of their role and constitutes a wanton politicization of the public service,” Lapid wrote to the legal advisor to the government.
Lapid added: “I call on the legal advisor and the foreign ministry ombudsman to immediately stop the blatant use of the foreign ministry for the purpose of trying to create international legitimacy for the trampling of Israeli democracy. As long as the legal advice has not been received, I call on the ambassadors of Israel to ignore the directive, which is clearly illegal, is not within the scope of their duties, and causes heavy damage to Israel’s foreign relations.”
Diaspora Minister Amichai Shikli responded to Lapid on Twitter: “Someone needs to reduce, if only a little, the damage of the most expensive and destructive campaign of incitement and intimidation ever led by an Israeli ID card issue against the State of Israel. Instead of the head of the opposition, you should be appointed the head of the BDS movement.”