Rafi Party (Reshimat Po?alei Yisrael)

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RAFI PARTY (Reshimat Poʿalei Yisrael)

Israeli socialist party, created in 1965 by David Ben-Gurion, Moshe Dayan, and Shimon Peres, following a split in MAPAI. One of the sources of the rift was the Lavon Affair, a dispute over a 1954 espionage operation. The defectors also accused MAPAI of inflexibility and a failure to provide opportunities for younger leaders. In 1968, this group merged with MAPAI and the Ahdut ha-Avodah to create the Israel Labor Party (ILP).

SEE ALSO Ahdut ha-Avodah;Ben-Gurion, David;Dayan, Moshe;Israel Labor Party;Lavon Affair;MAPAI;Peres, Shimon.