In a dramatic meeting of the Jewish Agency Executive on Monday night, attempts were made to unseat World Zionist Organization chairman Yaakov Hagoel as interim Jewish Agency chairman and the head of its selection committee for a new chairman.
Members of the executive, led by UJA-Federation of New York chief executive officer Eric Goldstein, questioned whether Hagoel's conflict of interest as both the interim chairman and the head of the selection committee hindered the process of selecting a new Agency chairman. Sources present at the meeting said Goldstein, the leader of the most powerful Federation, delivered an impassioned address.