After he stated last night that "the protesters against me in the United States are connecting with the PLO and Iran, and are spreading Israel's defamation worldwide," and stirred many reactions in the political arena and beyond, Michal Kastan Keder, the widow of Lieutenant Colonel Dolev Keder, z"l, who fell during Operation Protective Edge, responded sharply to Netanyahu.
In a short tweet on her Twitter account, she wrote, "Bibi, are you listening? I heard you say that I connected to the people who killed my husband."
In the opposition, they criticized Netanyahu's words after he accused the protesters in a demonstration against Israel. In response to questions from reporters as he boarded the plane on his way to the United States, Netanyahu said, "The protesters against me in the United States are joining the PLO and Iran, and are spreading Israel's defamation worldwide."
In response, the leader of the Machane HaMamlachti party, Benny Gantz, said: "Netanyahu's attack, while blaming the protesters in the US for connecting to our enemies, is severe and deserving of condemnation. Even if we don't agree with their methods, they are patriots who love the country. The immense damage that Netanyahu is causing Israeli society through his leadership cannot be fixed with a thousand fiery speeches at the UN. It's time to stop the authoritarian transformation and bring order to the government, instead of blaming the protesters."
Those who choose less diplomatic language include Avigdor Lieberman, the leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, who responded in his usual manner: "Mr. Prime Minister, once again, you are lying. The protesters in Israel and around the world are demonstrating against you and for the State of Israel.
"The one who is allied with Iran and the PLO is none other than you, Mr. Binyamin Netanyahu. You are the one who is tearing Israeli society apart from within. You are the one who is using our sons and daughters for your own purposes, and you prove to all of us day by day that you act only in accordance with your personal interests, even if it means that the country will go up in flames."
Opposition leader Yair Lapid added and said, "There is no one who has damaged our reputation in the world more than Netanyahu in recent months. Nothing helps the Iranians more than his government's actual coup. His accusations against the protesters are further proof of a serious distortion in his judgment and perception of reality."