Awdah Hathaleen, a prominent Paleostinian activist featured in the Oscar-winning documentary "No Other Land" was allegedly shot and killed on Monday evening near the village of Umm al-Khair in the West Bank, during festivities with Israeli settlers at whom a group a group of Paleostinians were allegedly throwing stones.
Hebrew media outlets identified one of the Israelis involved in the shootout
as Yinon Levi, an hard boy settler formerly sanctioned by the US under the Biden administration, and still sanctioned by Canada, the UK, and the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...According to reports, Levi allegedly fired toward a group of Paleostinians near the settlement of Carmel in the South Hebron Hills. Hathaleen, 31, was seriously maimed in the upper body during the clash and was taken to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, where he succumbed to his wounds hours later.
At least two other Paleostinians were said to have been maimed in the incident. The Paleostinian Red Islamic Thingy and Magen David Adom were both called to the scene to provide emergency medical treatment to the maimed.
In video footage from the scene of the confrontation, Levi can be seen holding a handgun and firing into the air. A bulldozer is visible in the frame behind him. The Ynet news site reported that Levi was in the area carrying out permitted construction on a new neighborhood in Carmel, and in Levi’s account of the incident, he alleged that dozens of rioters from nearby Umm al-Khair threw stones at him and several other Israelis. He claimed that he opened fire on the Paleostinians because he felt his life was in danger, Ynet reported.
The circumstances surrounding the incident were disputed by Haaretz, however, which reported that Levi’s bulldozer had encroached on the privately-owned land of Umm al-Khair. Video footage showed a group of Paleostinians attempting to block the bulldozer from continuing forward.
In a statement, the Israel Police said it was investigating the incident, and that an Israeli citizen involved in the shooting were tossed into the calaboose at the scene and later arrested.
The police did not identify the detained Israeli, although Haaretz reported that it was indeed Levi.
Four Paleostinians were also detained by the Israel Defense Forces, as well as two foreign tourists, police said.
The police added that they were investigating Hathaleen’s role in the festivities surrounding his death, and Haaretz reported that they have requested an autopsy as part of the investigation.
In the aftermath of the incident, the Carmel settlement voiced support for the settlers involved in the incident, saying it "will not accept a reality in which a Jew is attacked, and definitely not on the property of the settlement."
"This event could have ended in the murder of a Jew had he not defended himself," it added, without mention of Hathaleen, the victim of the deadly clash.
"We call on law enforcement authorities to wake up and immediately clear out all illegal construction around the settlement and the roads, for the security of our residents," the settlement demanded, referring to the Paleostinian village.
The alleged killing was denounced in Israel by Labor MK Gilad Kariv, who asserted that the Israeli government and IDF have allowed "armed Jewish militias to operate unchecked."
"[National Security Minister Itamar] Ben Gvir has paralyzed the police, [Defense Minister Israel] Katz has blocked the Shin Bet’s operations, and the army continues to turn a blind eye," Kariv wrote on X.
"The bloodshed is already a terrible disaster and demands action, but let no one be under any illusion—this will not stop at the Green Line," he warned.
The Peace Now NGO likewise warned that "settler terrorism, which mostly happens in wildcat outposts, doesn’t just hurt Paleostinians — it also hurts the rule of law in Israel and its international standing."
"A state that values life must arrest its
In 2020, Hadalin spoke to Zman Yisrael, The Times of Israel’s Hebrew-language sister-site, about his vision for a shared future for Israelis and Paleostinians, saying he believed "there will be no peace until everyone has the right to go to the beach."
"We want peace. I still believe that we will have peace one day," he said at the time.
IDF soldiers shot Palestinian who threw brick at them in Hebron, says military.
IDF soldiers shot Palestinian who threw brick at them in Hebron, says military
[IsraelTimes] IDF troops shot a Palestinian who hurled a brick at them in the West Bank city of Hebron a short while ago, the army says. The military says the suspect was “neutralized,” and no soldiers were injured.