Opposition leaders assail Netanyahu over claims about Iran war goals, saving Israel from annihilation

Opposition leaders react furiously to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s press conference this evening, assailing his claims that the recent war against Iran saved Israel from nuclear annihilation and that its main goals were achieved even though Tehran’s regime was not replaced.

“It would have been better for him to say, ‘I erred, I set false goals that I wasn’t able to achieve,'” says Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot. “This would have given Netanyahu much more credit and respect from the people, if he had admitted he made empty declarations.”

Eisenkot, increasingly seen as likely to be Netanyahu’s main rival in the upcoming election, accuses the premier of denying war goals he previously set and providing “zero real answers to a nation that has gone through the toughest years in its history.”

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid tweets: “You can argue that we are a power that is close to regional dominance, you can argue that we are in danger of annihilation and one step away from mass death, but you can’t make both arguments, and definitely not one minute apart.”

The Democrats party leader Yair Golan says: “If you dedicated most of your life to fighting the Iranian threat, and you say we came close to being annihilated, then you failed at your life mission. We appreciate the honesty.”