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יומנים > יומן - מלא 16/08/1948

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15.08.1948
225448

Monday, August 16, 1948

[Shimon] Peres, Elhanan [Yishai], and Benny Appelbaum [Ilan] - regarding the youth in training. I submitted the conclusions in writing to Ya'akov.

         - Rabbis I. M. Levin [minister of welfare] and Fishman [Maimon, minister of religious affairs] came to demand a special committee (representatives of Aguda [Agudas Israel], Mizrachi], [Ministry of] Defense, and Ministry of Recruitment) to arrange work in place of military service for religious girls. [They] report that Mina [Rogozik (Ben-Zvi), commander of the Women's Corps] is preaching that women should have abortions.

         - Shimon Horn [of Young Mapai] reports that most of the people [activists] in ''Aliya Bet are in the Navy, and it's a myth that most of them are part of Si'ah Bet [Faction B, which split from Mapai]. Only two people, M. Rabinowitz [sp.] - HaShomer HaTza'ir - and [Yisrael] Rosenbaum [sp.] are from Si'ah Bet. The rest - party members or not affiliated with a party.

         - Mina [Ben-Zvi, commander of the Women's Corps (WC)] denies what [Rabbi] Fishman and [Rabbi] Levin said about her lecturing on abortion, but according to her the situation in the WC is not good. So far 18-25-year-old women have been recruited primarily from among the poor, because the wealthy classes were released and assigned to work, and this situation is not right. The Appeals Committee releases employees of the [Zionist] General Council, the bank, etc. There are 7,000 female soldiers, and very few women who would be suitable as commanders.

         - In the afternoon [James] McDonald visited me with his assistant [Charles] Knox. He showed me the letter from the president [Truman] inquiring about the possibility of full recognition, a lifting of the embargo, and financial assistance to the state. The conversation was not official in any way. In fact, McDonald spoke nearly the whole time. In the middle of the conversation an air-raid siren went off, and even though it was clear that this was a mistake - one can assume that the Egyptians wouldn't try to shell Tel Aviv during the truce - we were driven by Paula into the shelter.

         - In the evening State Council on the new Israeli currency.