Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out against former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who has himself launched continuous criticism at the government in recent weeks. "Barak is the worst prime minister in the history of Israel," Netanyahu said Tuesday. Speaking to ultra-Orthodox reporters at his bureau in Jerusalem on Tuesday, Netanyahu responded to remarks recently sounded by Barak, including allegations that Netanyahu's policies have placed Israel's security in jeopardy. "No one knows what he is talking about," Netanyahu said. "No one actually knows. I spoke with my security advisers -- no one has any idea." Barak, who served as defense minister until 2013, including under Netanyahu, has made vague allegations that Netanyahu's relationship with the U.S. had compromised Israel's defense capabilities and alluded to a "very disturbing Israeli vulnerability to a key security challenge," on which he refused to elaborate. In his meeting with journalists Tuesday, Netanyahu mentioned Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman MK Avi Dichter's attempts to elicit more information from Barak. Barak declined Dichter's invitation to divulge the information to him, insisting only to present the information to the committee. "If there was something to be said, he could have told me or Dichter and we would have taken care of it," Netanyahu told the reporters. Netanyahu also touched on Barak's accusation that Israel, under Netanyahu's leadership, agreed to insufficient defense aid from the United States. "Barak was the one who promised American defense aid and failed. Where are the billions he promised for the security of Israel? He is just wagging his tail to craft his own [political] comeback," Netanyahu said. The internecine attacks between the two statesmen began last week, when Barak first made the allegations at a conference, eliciting a Likud statement declaring that Barak's leadership was "the biggest failure" in Israel's history. "His pathetic attempts to return to the political arena with his baseless and irresponsible allegations against Prime Minister Netanyahu border on recklessness," the Likud statement said. "It would be best if this same Barak, who lost the public's trust at record speed after about a year in office, would preaching to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has won the public's trust time and time again."
