Lapid indirectly criticizes new settler homes; says gov’t dealing with neglected issues

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid says at the opening of his Yesh Atid faction meeting that the current coalition is successfully dealing with issues that have been neglected “for ten years,” but indirectly criticizes Prime Minister Naftali Bennett over yesterday’s decision to build 1,300 new homes in West Bank settlements.

“Next time, I will be in the room during decisions on such matters,” Lapid says, after left-wing coalition parties complained about being blindsided by the decision.

Lapid adds: “I want to clear all the [background] noise and focus on what’s important: The budget will pass. The coalition is working. A big part of the difficulty is because we are insisting on dealing with things that weren’t dealt with for ten years.

“Look at what happened yesterday in the government and the Knesset. [We are] dealing with [crime in] the Arab community, the climate crisis, Holocaust survivors, youth groups, the LGBT community, people with disabilities, everything that was neglected for years.

“When you take care of things, there will be disagreements and conflicting interests. Action has a cost, but we are willing to pay it,” he says. “Israel is making progress.”