Stanley was born  May 1914 in Johannesburg South Africa to Sarah, a descendant of the Mayor of Liverpool, and Shimon, born in Vilnius and a direct descendant of Rabbi Eliahu, the Gaon of Vilna. Stanley has a sister, Rachel. He studied at King Edward School. In 1933 he made aliya illegally. He felt the genetic legacy to realize  Zionism, inherited from the Gaon of Vilna, pushing him to come to Eretz Yisrael. Stanley joined Kibbutz Degania. After two years the authorities discovered his illegal presence, and sent him back to South Africa. He worked in various professions, and was sent to the US on behalf of the South African Government. Stanley did not relinquish his dream of Aliya. In 1945 he returned to Eretz Yisrael. He settled in Jerusalem and worked chiefly as a foreign correspondent for the London Daily Express, Johannesburg Sunday Times, France Soir, and the New York Times. During this period he joined Lehi. His connections  with journalism and foreign correspondent sources, yielded precious news, invaluable for the underground. After the UN Decision of November 29th, he helped establish a Lehi base at ‘Camp Dror’ Talbiyeh. He participated in the force which attempted a breakthrough of the Old City Walls on July 17,1948. He helped prepare the underground broadcasts in English, meant for the British Army. He participated in the conquest of Deir-Yassin. Later, using funds he raised, he established in that neighborhood the ‘Dvar Yerushalayim’ Yeshiva, in memory of his parents. Stanley played an important part in the assassination of Bernadotte, an operation planned in his apartment. After the assassination he was arrested with other Lehi members and imprisoned in the Jaffa, Akko, and then Jalameh Prisons. After over five months, he was released during the general amnesty. He worked in journalism afterwards, and did business in the US two years. For seven years he co-operated with Dr. Yisrael Eldad  publishing  the Times of Israel, with a circulation of about 50,000 copies in the US and Israel. He published the international edition of Dr. Eldad’s book, The Jewish Revolution. Stanley lives in Jerusalem with his wife Helen, née Milner. He is the father of three daughters and two sons (including those from previous marriages) and grandfather to seven.