Attending a cultural event in Beersheba, Vice Premier and Minister for Strategic Affairs Ya'alon commented on the assassination of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, saying:
"Any leader that is connected to the axis of evil – whether he is the head of a rogue state that sponsors terrorism like Syria or Iran or the head of a terrorist organization – does not sleep well at night.
"Nasrallah definitely does not sleep so well in bunkers. The West hasn't called (these leaders) illegitimate yet. How is it that the president of Iran calls for the destruction of Israel and still carries a speech at the United Nations?".
"I would expect the West to isolate him politically and ban him from entering any western country. In Syria we see a leader that is massacring his own people, and the West stutters. This is hypocrisy that stems from whatever interests, and I hope it changes soon".