ABSTRACT
Israeli government administration personnel came from several sources. There were veterans of the Jewish Agency for Palestine, Histadrut officials, and party members who obtained jobs through personal connections. Under Mapai, the Israeli government greatly extended the functions for which the British mandatory authorities had been responsible. Although Mapai governments formally had a socialist orientation, in reality a mixed economy developed that included a very large public sector. The Prime Minister's office is the most important ministry in the government. It has also adopted functions that previously belonged to other ministries, such as the National Council for Research and Development. Because of Israel's precarious security situation, Defense Ministry has become one of the largest government agencies; it is responsible for organizing and maintaining the defense forces and for coordinating a large military industry. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is Israel's third-most-important ministry, less because of its size, budget, or numbers of personnel than because its activities draw constant international media attention.
