Cabinet Postpones for 48 Hours Decision on Whether to Dissolve Itself or Reshuffle Portfolios

Premier Golda Meir’s coalition Cabinet agreed tonight to postpone for two days a decision on whether to dissolve itself or to simply reshuffle portfolios with the aim of assigning the Defense Ministry to someone other than Moshe Dayan. The 48-hour breather will presumably be taken up by a continuation of the intensive intra-party debate on how to honor the principle of ministerial responsibility for Yom Kippur War preparedness shortcomings without destroying the Labor Party and bringing down the government.

A final decision is expected to be forthcoming just before the Knesset convenes in special session Thursday to face the government with a no confidence motion. The Labor Party remains split at the moment, with a majority of its leadership insisting that Dayan must go and the ex-Rafi faction demanding that if Dayan is to be saddled with responsibility for Yom Kippur War errors, it must be borne by other ministers as well, including Premier Meir.

Rafi spokesmen have made it clear that if Dayan has to resign, Mrs. Meir must do the same. They noted that both she and the Defense Minister were absolved of blame by the Agranat Committee’s partial report on events leading up to the war last Oct.

Information Minister Shimon Peres, a leader of the former Rafi faction, said today that a Cabinet reshuffle short of collective resignations boiled down to Dayan’s ouster. Finance Minister Pinhas Sapir said he opposed both Dayan’s dismissal and the Cabinet’s resignation. He agree that ministerial responsibility should apply to future decisions but maintained that it should not be made retroactive. Spokesmen for Mapam, a partner in the Labor Alignment, said the faction wanted Dayan’s resignation but would agree reluctantly to his remaining in the Cabinet in another capacity. The Achdut Avoda faction insisted on Dayan’s resignation.

Meanwhile, public clamor for Dayan’s departure continued. About 150 representatives of 75 kibbutzim affiliated with the Hashomer Hatzair (Mapam) movement demonstrated tonight outside the Prime Ministers Office demanding that Dayan resign. They were joined by members of other kibbutz movements and student protestors.