Likud Accuses Lapid of Pre-Writing Security Briefing Response

The Likud party accused opposition leader Yair Lapid of preparing a political attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in advance, even before receiving a security briefing. According to Likud, Lapid emerged from a security update with Netanyahu at 11:39 PM and, just two minutes later at 11:41 PM, released a lengthy statement criticizing the Prime Minister. Likud questioned how Lapid could have drafted such a detailed response so quickly, suggesting the statement was pre-written and unrelated to the briefing he received. "Either he writes at the speed of light or the message was prepared in advance without regard to the review presented to him," a Likud statement read. Lapid's statement had criticized the timing of security updates, stating they should come from professional bodies like the IDF and Shin Bet, not from a politician's Twitter account during an election campaign, and added there was no reason to cause public panic. The security briefing, which included intelligence on potential attacks on various fronts ahead of elections, was also attended by the Military Secretary and the intelligence officer of the Military Secretariat.