Agranat Commission of Inquiry

   In November 1973, the government of Israel appointed a five-man commission of inquiry to investigate the events leading up to the Yom Kippur War (1973), including information concerning the enemy's moves and intentions; the assessments and decisions of military and civilian bodies regarding this information; and the Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) deployments, preparedness for battle, and actions in the first phase of the fighting. The commission was composed of Supreme Court chief justice Shimon Agranat; Justice Moshe Landau of the Supreme Court; State Comptroller Yitzhak Nebenzahl; and two former chiefs of staff of the IDF, Yigael Yadin and Chaim Laskov. The commission issued an interim report in April 1974 that focused primarily on events prior to the outbreak of hostilities and the conduct of the war during its early stages. Among its findings were that Prime Minister Golda Meir and Defense Minister Moshe Dayan were not responsible for Israel's lack of preparation for the Yom Kippur War and that faulty intelligence analysis was the primary failure. Lieutenant General David Elazar subsequently resigned as chief of staff of the IDF, and Major General Yitzhak Hofi was named as his temporary replacement. The commission's report also called for a new director of military intelligence to replace Major General Zeira and the reassignment of three other intelligence officers.