Join our Community
Support ToI and remove all ads
Learn more
×
Diana Bletter

Diana Bletter

Reporter at The Times of Israel
Elazar Yair Wilensky, killed in an explosion near the Lebanon border on October 12, 2026. (Courtesy)
October 13, 2026, 10:01 am
Student killed in blast near Lebanon border ID’d as 9th grader Elazar Yair Wilensky
More than a dozen hospitalized, five kids in serious condition, as Education Ministry says the route it approved didn’t cross into restricted area, group may have gone off-trail
By ToI Staff and Diana Bletter
Illustrative image: cancer cells against a backdrop of DNA (Mohammed Haneefa Nizamudeen via iStock by Getty Images)
October 12, 2026, 4:15 pm
How cancer cells survive chemo: Israeli researchers find ‘guardian proteins’ protect tumors
Ben-Gurion University scientists show that destroying such proteins forces cancer cells to self-destruct, in potential key to overcoming chemotherapy resistance
By Diana Bletter
A man and a woman draped in an Israeli flag watch the release by the Hamas terror group of hostages Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas in the Gaza Strip, on a screen at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, on February 1, 2025. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
October 11, 2026, 3:20 pm
One in five Israelis ‘still struggling to function’ since Oct. 7 – new study
Study finds women have higher levels of severe impairment in daily functioning due to their mental health, with 32% of women, 18 to 35, reporting significant distress
By Diana Bletter
Illustrator Itai Raveh’s free interpretation of Rudolph Zallinger’s iconic 1965 illustration of human evolution, popularly known as 'March of Progress.' (Courtesy/Weizmann Institute of Science)
October 9, 2026, 9:00 pm
Weak knees, smart brains: Israeli study gets to the bottom of genetic evolution
Weizmann Institute of Science researchers say a decrease in glycosaminoglycan (GAG) molecules in joints separated human ancestors from apes and led to greater neuroplasticity in people
By Diana Bletter
Yehonatan Maatuf, left, who was injured in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza on April 11, 2025, about to train with Sagi Dovev at the House of Heroes in Or Yehuda on September 9, 2026. (Matan Siegel/Times of Israel)
October 7, 2026, 11:20 pm
After war put them on the ropes, a martial arts gym gives wounded vets a fighting chance
House of Heroes, founded by former IDF resilience trainer Sagi Dovev, uses MMA and other sparring styles to help rehabilitate some of the 26,200 soldiers scarred in body and mind since October 7, 2023
By Diana Bletter
IDF Lotar unit soldiers crying on October 10, 2023, at the sight of the Kibbutz Kfar Aza home that still had challah from the family's Shabbat eve meal on the table when it was attacked by Hamas terrorists on October 7. (Courtesy Ziv Koren/Polaris)
October 6, 2026, 12:43 pm
Nearly 1 million Israelis called mental health hotline over three years of war
ERAN service says it handled 21,829 calls involving suicidality since October 7, 2023; such calls from teenagers and young adults nearly doubled; loneliness also surging
By Diana Bletter
Children arrive for their first day of school at Gamla School in the northern town of Katzrin, on September 1, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)
October 4, 2026, 11:43 pm
After three years of war, Israeli kids bear the brunt of still-rising mental toll
Clalit Health Services finds psychiatric emergency visits among children and adolescents rose 121.3% last year; PTSD diagnoses across population doubled after October 7 and continue to rise
By Diana Bletter
Israeli children seen on the first day of school at the Gabrieli Carmel School in Tel Aviv on September 1, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
September 25, 2026, 6:13 pm
Israeli study finds 68% of young kids innately think like scientists
Researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science and the University of Patras, Greece, say that young children can be taught scientific reasoning if asked ‘how’ things work, not ‘why’
By Diana Bletter
Baruch Neriya, 9, who died from a brain-eating amoeba after a swim in the Sea of Galilee. (Pardes Hanna Regional Council)
September 24, 2026, 5:43 pm
Boy with rare brain-eating amoeba dies after Sea of Galilee swim
Baruch Neriya, 9, from Pardes Hanna succumbs to Naegleria fowleri infection; amoeba, contracted through the nose, is rare but highly fatal; Israel has seen 3 cases in recent years
By Diana Bletter
Illustration of effects of eating in company. (Courtesy Shir Atzil/AI Assisted)
September 23, 2026, 9:04 pm
Blood glucose levels are lower when you eat with a loved one — Israeli study
Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Sheba Medical Center researchers show that human bonding helps basic body functions; findings can help treat diabetes and other metabolic conditions
By Diana Bletter
Illustrative photo of a premature baby in an ICU incubator. (Pixelistanbul via iStock)
September 15, 2026, 4:53 pm
Eau de mom: Israeli study shows how a mother’s scent comforts premature babies
‘Close to the Heart,’ an initiative at two Israeli NICUs, uses smell to ease physical and emotional separation between mother and newborn, reducing stress and strengthening vitals
By Diana Bletter
Druze horsemen and cattle growers from the four Golan Heights Druze villages of Majdal Shams, Ein Qiniyye, Buq’ata and Mas’ade parade through the Golan Heights ahead of Eid al-Adha festival, in Majdal Shams, Golan Heights, May 23, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)
September 14, 2026, 10:06 am
Golan Druze increasingly embrace Israel, reject Syria in seismic shift triggered by tragedy
After decades of identifying as Syrian, community that saw kids killed by Hezbollah rocket and brethren massacred by forces controlling Damascus pivots toward ‘protector’ Israel
By Diana Bletter
People enjoy the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel on a hot summer day, August 2, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)
September 8, 2026, 5:26 pm
Sea of Galilee beaches stay open despite recent brain-eating amoeba infection
Health Ministry official says ‘everyone will decide what they want to do,’ with area expecting influx of visitors over holidays; no wave of hotel cancellations recorded after boy hospitalized
By ToI Staff and Diana Bletter
Illustration of Tel Aviv University's Prof. Yuval Ebenstein's new blood test, which uses a DNA chip to detect a tumor’s biological fingerprint. (Courtesy/Tel Aviv University)
September 7, 2026, 11:00 am
$60 Israeli blood test can detect stage 2-4 lung cancer with 93% accuracy, study shows
Tel Aviv University researchers develop simple chip that skips DNA sequencing; findings can pave the way for earlier cancer diagnostics and real-time treatment monitoring
By Diana Bletter
An underground parking area converted into a treatment ward at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, after many patients were relocated following the outbreak of war, June 8, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
September 6, 2026, 4:49 pm
1,370 doctors left Israel over past 3 years, research finds, the equivalent of a hospital
Tel Aviv University researchers document extensive brain drain in 2023-2025, with a fivefold increase over previous decade in annual departures of physicians who haven’t returned
By Diana Bletter
Load More

Sign in or Join The Times of Israel Community

Sign in or Register

Paying ToI Community members are invited to comment on articles
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By joining you agree to the terms and conditions
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Join The Times of Israel Community
Sign in or Register
Only ToI Community members can comment below articles
Forgot your password? / Send me a login link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.
Join The Times of Israel Community
Commenting is available for paying members of The Times of Israel Community only. Please join our Community to comment and enjoy other Community benefits.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Confirm Mail
Thank you! Now check your email
You are now a member of The Times of Israel Community! We sent you an email with a login link to . Once you're set up, you can start enjoying Community benefits and commenting.
Back to top
Never miss breaking news on Israel
Get notifications to stay updated
You're subscribed
image
Register for free
and continue reading
Registering allows you to manage your newsletters and alerts and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.