Stav Shaffir
IsraelEarly Life and Military Service
Stav Shafir was born on May 17, 1985, in Netanya, Israel, to a family with Iraqi, Polish, Lithuanian, and Romanian roots. At age 12, she moved with her family to Pardesiya and joined "HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed" (Working and Studying Youth Federation), an Israeli branch of the International Falcon Movement - Socialist Educational International. After high school, she volunteered for a year with the Israel Nature and Parks Authority in Tiberias. Shafir served as a cadet in the Israeli Air Force Academy and became a writer for the IDF magazine "Bamahaneh," covering events such as the disengagement from Gaza and the 2006 Second Lebanon War. She retired from the military with the rank of sergeant.
Education and Activism
After her military service, Shafir joined the Olive Tree educational program at London Metropolitan University, designed for youth leaders working towards Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation. Simultaneously, she interned in the British Parliament. She earned a bachelor's degree in sociology and journalism in London in 2009 and proceeded to Tel Aviv University, where she completed a master's degree in history and philosophy in 2010. Shafir also studied at the Rimon Jazz and Contemporary Music School in Ramat HaSharon and plays multiple instruments, including piano, violin, guitar, oud, and drums. As a freelance journalist, she contributed to various publications, including "Ha'ir," "Mako," "National Geographic," and "Yediot Ahronot."
In 2011, Shafir co-founded the "Tent Protest" social movement in Israel, which raised issues of housing affordability, the cost of living, economic inequality, and democracy. The protests garnered 400,000 participants. Shafir established and led the "Extra-Parliamentary Organization of the Tent Camps Education Project," helped set up over 120 tent camps across Israel, spearheaded demonstrations (including the "Million March"), and lobbied for social justice issues in the Knesset.
Political Career
In May 2012, the Labor Party invited Shafir to join its list for the 2013 parliamentary elections. She secured the ninth spot in the primaries (later moving up to eighth after Amir Peretz resigned). On February 5, 2013, Shafir became the youngest member of the 19th Knesset. During her term, she was not only the youngest but also the poorest MP, with assets of $20,000 and owning neither an apartment nor a car. Shafir served on the Finance Committee and the Joint Committee on the Budget. She was actively involved in various lobby groups, including those supporting social welfare, the environment, teachers, the arts, Holocaust survivors, and anticorruption efforts. She also focused on women's rights and LGBTQ issues.
In the 2015 party primaries, Shafir placed second and secured the fourth spot on the Zionist Union list (an alliance between Labor and HaTnua). From March 31, 2015, onward, she served as an MP in the 20th Knesset, chairing its Special Committee on Accessibility and Transparency of Government Information. She was among the eight Knesset members who refused a salary raise amid stagnant wages in Israel.
In the 21st Knesset (from April 30, 2019), Shafir represented the Labor Party as a member of the Finance Committee. In the party leadership election on July 2, 2019, she came second with 27% of the votes, surpassing Itzik Shmuli but losing to Amir Peretz. Shafir subsequently left the Labor Party and resigned from the Knesset on July 30, 2019; her seat was taken by her former party colleague, Merav Michaeli. The Green Movement, led by Shafir, merged with the left-wing Meretz and Ehud Barak's Democratic Israel party to form the "Democratic Camp" bloc for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
