The following is the full text of Opposition Leader Yair Lapid’s critique of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, delivered in a televised address a day after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire in the war against Iran.

In a few hours, a day, two days, or whenever he feels he can emerge from the bunker, Benjamin Netanyahu will stand before the State of Israel and try to sell you on the idea that the campaign in Iran was a success. That will be a complete lie.

The army did amazing work; the best air force in the world carried out everything asked of it and more. The people of Israel demonstrated national resilience and determination. We dealt Iran heavy blows. That is precisely why the total failure stands out even more starkly.

What happened here is a diplomatic disaster on a scale I do not recall ever seeing. I was prime minister, I was foreign minister, and I do not remember a diplomatic collapse like this. For the thousandth time, it has been proven: military force without a diplomatic plan does not lead to a decisive victory.

Netanyahu led us into a strategic debacle. Nothing less. What we saw was a disgraceful combination of arrogance, irresponsibility, lack of planning, negligent staff work, zero handling of the home front, and lies sold to the Americans that damaged the trust between our two countries. A military success turned into a diplomatic disaster.

I know these are harsh things to say, but they are spoken out of anger and genuine anxiety. Of all the possible outcomes, Netanyahu delivered the worst one: the regime in Iran was not defeated, the nuclear threat was not removed, and the ballistic missiles and Hezbollah’s missiles remain aimed at every home in Israel.

The State of Israel entered this war with a rare consensus. The public supported it across the board. I supported the war and its objectives from the very first moment in dozens of interviews with the international media. But after six weeks of dead and wounded and rushing to shelters, it became clear that Netanyahu is incapable of winning any campaign.

The prime minister deceived the citizens of Israel, deceived his partners, and, through a series of theatrical press conferences, sold the public a strategic plan that did not exist.

Israel had no influence whatsoever over the agreement signed overnight between the United States and Iran through Pakistani mediation. They will try to sell you the story that we influenced things behind the scenes, that they consulted us, that there were late-night talks and secret meetings – know this: these are hollow lies.

Netanyahu turned us into a client state that receives instructions over the phone on matters touching the very core of our national security. At a critical moment for our security, he was pushed away from the table. The whole world saw it. The entire Middle East saw it. At the moment of truth, the Israeli government was demoted from the status of a strategic ally to the level of a demolition contractor.

This war was managed as if the citizens of the State of Israel were the government’s cannon fodder. No sheltering solutions, no educational plans, no compensation plans, no plan for Ben Gurion Airport – nothing! Zero concern for the citizens.

For three years now, the citizens of Israel have been paying an unbearable price for Netanyahu’s failures. Three years after October 7, Hamas rules Gaza, Hezbollah rules Lebanon, and instead of an 86-year-old Khamenei ruling Iran, a 56-year-old Khamenei rules Iran.

The residents of the north have been abandoned yet again. After everything they have been through, after everything they were promised, the threat to their lives has not been removed.

This government has lost the Democrats in the United States, lost a large part of the Republicans in the United States, lost Europe, and missed a golden opportunity to establish a military and strategic coalition with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states.

It is time to admit the truth: Netanyahu has lost it.

Israel needs experienced leadership, but he is now nearing his eightieth year, having been in power for far too many years, dragging us from one disaster to the next. This time, he dragged us – and pushed the United States – into war without a single diplomatic vision for how to end it.

Look at who he ran this war with. What was he thinking? That Yonatan Urich and Ziv Agmon would lead the people of Israel into battle? That [Itamar] Ben Gvir and Israel Katz are diplomatic strategists? That a gang of political hacks and extortionists, who stole billions from Israeli citizens in the middle of a war, would be the ones to change the Middle East?

Now, a new campaign will begin – a campaign for your minds, citizens of Israel. They will sell you defeat as victory, and collapse as success. Netanyahu will stand before you in a blue suit and a red tie and tell you, “Not everything can be told, and there are many things you do not know.” Know this: those are lies. We do know what happened.

What happened is that Netanyahu went to war under ideal conditions, but with absolutely no idea how to end it. On the battlefield, we won; on the diplomatic front, it is a total defeat. In the words of King Pyrrhus: “One more such victory, and we are lost.”

It could have been handled differently: with a diplomatic team working from the very first moment, with a diplomatic plan, with partners in the region, with a functioning National Security Council, with a functioning Foreign Ministry, with teams dedicated to international influence and public messaging, with efficient government ministries working for the citizens, with a dependable team you can rely on, with responsible conduct, and by telling the public the truth.

In closing, I want to say to the citizens of Israel: You were amazing. The adults who rushed to shelters without complaining, the children who coped with anxiety and their mothers who pretended everything was fine, our heroic fighters. You deserve better. It can be different, and it will be different. That day is no longer far off. Thank you very much.

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