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Stav Levaton

Stav Levaton

Stav Levaton is a military reporter for The Times of Israel
Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu casts his vote in the party primaries at a polling station in Tel Aviv, on August 10, 2022. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90/File)
July 19, 2026, 9:03 pm
Likud grants Netanyahu 8 slots on Knesset list, option to nix primary in wartime
Key panel authorizes PM to convene committee of Likud mayors to choose list if security conditions prevent primary vote; MK Bitan accuses panel chair of harming party’s democracy
By Ariela Karmel and Stav Levaton
The Democrats party leader Yair Golan (left) shakes hands with new member Omri Ronen at a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, February 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
July 19, 2026, 6:11 pm
Katz orders Democrats party candidate ousted from IDF reserves over call to refuse service
After Omri Ronen says he would support army refusal to prevent government’s alleged judicial ‘coup,’ defense minister vows not to allow ‘scourge of refusal’ among ranks
By Stav Levaton
FILE: Israeli soldiers wounded in the war with Hamas walk in the rehabilitation division of Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, December 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
July 16, 2026, 2:04 pm
Government approves sweeping overhaul of wounded veterans’ rehab system
Adopting public health committee’s recommendations, new plan looks to increase staffing, funding and independence for system after Defense Ministry warned it could ‘collapse’
By ToI Staff and Stav Levaton
Left: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 3, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Right: US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, June 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
July 15, 2026, 1:11 am
Trump said to urge Netanyahu to pull Israeli troops from Syria, Lebanon in recent call
US leader reportedly told PM ‘they don’t want you there’; Jerusalem and Beirut hold talks on IDF withdrawals from ‘pilot zones,’ with FM Sa’ar saying Israel is ready to move ahead
By Stav Levaton, Jacob Magid and Agencies
Senior Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, speaks during a conference in Gaza City, on November 4, 2019. (Abed Rahim Khatib/ Flash90/ File)
July 12, 2026, 11:24 pm
In memo before October 7 massacre, Sinwar predicted Israel might respond with nuclear strike
Uncovered document from 2022, written in slain terror chief’s own hand, lays out plans for mass assault, with goal of capturing territory, expelling residents, and taking hostages
By Stav Levaton and ToI Staff
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chief of staff Ido Norden (YouTube screenshot)
July 9, 2026, 3:05 am
Recordings reveal repeated police requests for PM to testify on Bild leak affair were rebuffed
‘We don’t have time. It’s irrelevant,’ Netanyahu’s chief of staff heard telling investigator, who is told to speak with premier’s lawyers
By Stav Levaton
Stills from CENTCOM footage of US strikes on Iran, July 8-9, 2026. (CENTCOM via X)
July 9, 2026, 1:28 am
US launches 2nd night of strikes against Iran, as Israel said bracing for war to restart
IRGC attacks Kuwait and Bahrain, says it targeted American bases; US refueling planes reportedly to return to region; Pakistan urges restraint on all sides; PM: Hegseth nixing visit to Israel ‘could mean something’
By Stav Levaton, Jacob Magid, Nava Freiberg, Agencies and ToI Staff
Houthi supporters raise a banner showing their leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi, during a rally against Israel and the United States' war with Iran, in Sanaa, Yemen, April 3, 2026. (AP/Osamah Abdulrahman)
July 8, 2026, 9:21 am
Alarm over potential Eilat attack met with skepticism, though not toward Houthi threat
After Shin Bet chief reportedly warns October 7 style attack could target remote southern city, experts say Yemen-based terror group has the will, though probably lacks a way to carry out assault
By Stav Levaton
Itzik Saidyan (center) appears at a Knesset House Committee meeting in the Knesset on July 5, 2026. (Noam Moskowitz/Knesset Spokesman's Office)
July 6, 2026, 12:43 am
IDF veteran who self-immolated begs Knesset: Prioritize combat soldiers, not Torah study
Addressing debate on Basic Law to declare Torah study foundational value, Itzik Saidyan says highest priority must be ‘the ones who go into battle… who feel forgotten’
By Stav Levaton and ToI Staff
Illustrative: Palestinian journalists carry posters with pictures of colleagues who were killed by Israeli forces, in front of the United Nations office in the West Bank city of Ramallah on October 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
July 2, 2026, 10:11 pm
Media watchdog rejects claim it seeks to exclude Palestinian, Lebanese journalists after Gaza terror links
CPJ pushes back on ‘unsubstantiated allegations,’ reaffirms journalist criteria amid backlash over Gaza database review, after ToI found some Gaza entries were of Hamas or PIJ operatives
By Stav Levaton
A cheering crowd at Ben-Gurion Airport raises a soldier in the rescue squad that freed the hijacked hostages from Uganda earlier in the day, July 4, 1976. In the background is the C-130 transport plane which took part in the raid. The rescuer's face is obscured for security reasons. (AP Photo/Pool)
June 26, 2026, 6:00 am
‘Zero hour is coming’: How Israel went from negotiating over hostages to the daring raid at Entebbe
The Entebbe rescue operation, whose 50th anniversary is approaching, is the stuff of Israeli legend. A new trove of archival documents shows how the government took the fateful decision — despite the risks
By Ben Sales and Stav Levaton
United Torah Judaism MK Yitzchak Goldknopf (left) and his senior aide Motti Babchik attend a meeting of the Knesset House Committee in Jerusalem, June 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
June 26, 2026, 2:02 am
Knesset to hold marathon discussions next week to fast-track Basic Law on Torah study
Parliament’s legal adviser warns lawmakers against accelerated process, as MKs seek to push through legislation before Knesset’s expected dissolution ahead of elections
By Ariela Karmel and Stav Levaton
An Israeli soldier reads a newspaper with a picture of Gilad Shalit as a tank prepares to deploy near the Gaza border on June 26, 2006. (AFP/MENAHEM KAHANA)
June 25, 2026, 6:11 am
20 years on, newly released military logs detail confusion during Shalit abduction
Records trace initial moments after attack, with soldier only identified as kidnapped hours after being dragged into Gaza, setting off 5-year national crisis and exchange deal seen as precursor to October 7
By Stav Levaton
David Zini at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City on August 6, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
June 23, 2026, 11:43 pm
Zini cancels Shin Bet Pride Month event, pulls budget from LGBTQ group – report
Event organizers reportedly not given reason for last-minute cancellation; employees said to decry move as departure from agency’s values of equality and inclusion
By Stav Levaton and Shira Silkoff
Combo pictures clockwise from top left: Ahmed Abu Eisha in civilian attire and in Palestinian Islamic Jihad uniform. Mohamed Nased Abu Huwaidi with Press flak jacket and in Islamic Jihad uniform; Ahmed Abu al-Atta in football shirt and Palestinian Islamic Jihad uniform; Hussam al-Adlouni in civilian attire and in Hamas military wing uniform. (Pictures from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad social media, Facebook, social media; Used in accordance with clause 27a of the copyright law)
June 22, 2026, 12:32 pm
Finally naming their war dead, Gazan terror groups admit some slain journalists were fighters
A ToI review finds obituaries published by Hamas and Islamic Jihad in recent weeks include several figures previously identified as press; widely cited media advocacy database removes several names of fighters it had said were journalists
By Nurit Yohanan and Stav Levaton
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