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Straight talk from Israel's Lapid includes criticism of US

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid does not stop for a minute, including controversial remarks on Poland, on the US Consulate in Jerusalem and on Afghanistan.

Opposition and Yesh Atid party leader Yair Lapid attends a press conference, Tel Aviv, Israel, May 6, 2021.
Opposition and Yesh Atid party leader Yair Lapid attends a press conference, Tel Aviv, Israel, May 6, 2021. — Amir Levy/Getty Images

At a briefing for foreign correspondents Sept. 1, Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid surprised everyone with his outspoken criticism of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. It was just over a day after the last American soldier left that country. US President Joe Biden was still facing mounting public criticism of the withdrawal. To many it seemed as if the Americans were leaving Afghanistan with their tail between their legs.

“I think the entire globe was concerned, and first and foremost the Americans themselves [about the way the withdrawal played out]. It didn’t happen the way it was supposed to happen. … It was probably the right decision that maybe wasn’t performed in the right manner,” Lapid told the group of journalists.

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