Israel’s Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon apologized twice to US Secretary of State John Kerry – in Hebrew and English – after being quoted by a newspaper lambasting the top US diplomat’s push for a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

“Secretary of State John Kerry – who arrived here determined, and who operates from an incomprehensible obsession and a sense of messianism – can’t teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians,” Yaalon told an Israeli newspaper.  “The only thing that might save us is if John Kerry wins the Nobel Prize and leaves us be.”

Oh dear.

The White House and US State Department followed with an unusual rebuke of an Israeli official, describing Yaalon’s comments as “offensive”, and described the lengths to which Kerry and his predecessors have gone to protect Israel and hammer out deals with neighbors that weren’t all that welcoming when Israel first showed up in the neighborhood.  Unmentioned was the billions of dollars in foreign aid that the United States gives to Israel for its defense every year.

By the end of Tuesday, Yaalon was singing a different tune.

"Israel and the United states share a common goal to advance the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians led by Secretary Kerry.  We appreciate Secretary Kerry's many efforts towards that end.  The defense minister had no intention to cause any offense to the secretary, and he apologizes if the secretary was offended by words attributed to the minister,” went the statement from Yaalon’s office.

It’s the second time in recent history that Israel has bristled against US attempts to smooth out rough spots in the Middle East.  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was publicly skeptical of the deal to get Iran to roll back its nuclear program.