Promier David Ben Gurion today sent a letter to Rabbi J.L. Maimon, Minister of Religion, notifying him that if the accusations concerning violations of religious edicts in the immigrant camps in Israel turn out to be true, he will leave the Cabinet. However, should the charges by the Religious Bloc be unfounded, then the religious groups will have to bear the consequences, the letter stated.
The Cabinet committee investigating the charges started its hearings today. The committee is expected to hear a number of withnesses and to proceed to the immigration camps next week to continue the investigation there.
The attempt made by Promier Ben Gurion to enlarge the present coalition Cabinet by inviting the Mapam, left-wing labor group, and the General Zionists to joint it, reached a stalemate today when the Mapam demanded three portfolios in the Cabinet, including the post of Minister of Interior.
The “inner circles” of the Mapam, General Zionist and Mapai parties met here last night separately in an effort to work out a formula which would result in widening of the present coalition government.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
