Odeh Hathalin, akaAwdah Hathaleen, a prominent Palestinian activist and community leader who was a consultant on the Oscar-winning documentaryNo Other Land, was shot and killed by an Israeli settler in the occupied West Bank on Monday. The incident was first reported by the film’s co-director, Israeli journalistYuval Abraham, who said that Hathalin had been in critical condition after being shot “in the lungs.” His death from the injuries was later confirmed by the Palestinian health ministry. According to the director on social media, residents had identified the shooter asYinon Levi, a settler among a group originally sanctioned by PresidentJoe Biden, as well as the UK and EU, though those sanctions have since been rescinded under theDonald Trumpadministration.
Notably, Hathalin was shot in the village of Umm al-Khair in the community of Masafer Yatta, whereNo Other Landwas focused. The documentarycovers the violence and destruction within the communitycaused by Israeli soldiers and settlers as Palestinian activists resist forced displacement. Israeli police said forces were on the scene and had detained an Israeli citizen they would not identify at the time, though the media later reported on Monday that Levi was arrested under suspicion of Hathalin’s murder. He was later released on house arrest on Tuesday while the investigation continued. InAbraham’s post on X, the director also shared a video of Levi “firing like crazy,” though it was not made clear if this was directly related to the incident where the activist was killed.
In addition to his activism within Umm al-Khair, Hathalin was a father of three and worked as an English teacher in the area. For the Israeli-Palestinian collective that createdNo Other Land, he was vital to their work, given his support of journalists working in the area. He would also directly participate in the filming ofthe successful documentary, whichwould go on to win the Best Documentary Academy Award earlier this year. Abraham described him as “a remarkable activist,” while another of the film’s directors, Palestinian filmmakerBasel Adra, called him a “dear friend” inhis own social media post. “I can hardly believe it,” he wrote. “My dear friend Awdah was slaughtered this evening. He was standing in front of the community center in his village when a settler fired a bullet that pierced his chest and took his life. This is how Israel erases us — one life at a time.”
Hathalin’s Death Is Part of a Decades-Long Cycle of Violence in the West Bank
Violence and harassment against Palestinians living in the West Bankhave been commonplaceever since Israel declared much of the area a live-fire training zone back in the 1980s. However, the October 2023 terrorist attack by Hamas has only enflamed the situation, with the United Nationsreporting at least 964 Palestinians having been killedby military forces or settlers in the West Bank, including Eastern Jerusalem, since then. The filmmakers ofNo Other Landare intimately familiar with this.Hamdan Ballal, another co-director of the feature,was beaten by settlers and taken from his homeby Israeli soldiers in an incident earlier this year, thoughhe has since been freed. He told CNN after his release that he feared he would be killed by the settlers. The film itself drives home the grim nature of the violence with its ending, showing the moment Adra’s cousin,Zakara al-Adra, is shot in October 2023.
Thanks to their influence on Israeli politics, though, many settlers get by with violent acts without arrests or, if they are brought in, often get the charges dropped. France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs was “saddened” by what happened to Hathalin, calling his death “an act of terrorism” in an official statement. “France condemns this murder in the strongest possible terms, as well as all the deliberate violence perpetrated by extremist settlers against the Palestinian population, which has been increasing across the West Bank, particularly in Kafr Malik and the Christian village of Taybeh in recent weeks," the release read. Israeli parliament memberOfer Cassifalso expressed outrage,penning a letter to Israel’s Attorney General demanding an investigation. “The incident occurred in broad daylight, in front of cameras, with no fear of legal consequences – testament to the paralysis of law enforcement and the complete sense of immunity enjoyed by violent settlers.”
Stay tuned here at Collider for more as this story develops.
