A tribute to Awdah Hathaleen

A 31 year old Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen was shot dead in Umm Al-Khair village this week in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli media have reported that the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court rejected a police request to extend the house arrest of Yinon Levi, an Israeli settler sanctioned by the UK and the EU, who local residents say shot dead Awdah Hathaleen. Rebecca Kesby has been speaking to Awdah's friend and colleague - and co-director of the Oscar-winning film "No Other Land" - Basel Adra.

(Photo: Mourners gather in Umm al-Khair, a village in Masafer Yatta in the occupied West Bank, on 29 July 2025, during the funeral of Awdah Hathaleen, a 31-year-old Palestinian English teacher and father of three, who was shot and killed by Yinon Levi, a settler accused of multiple acts of violence and sanctioned by European authorities. The funeral is interrupted by Israeli soldiers, who disperse mourners and prevent journalists from documenting the event. Family members, including cousin Alaa Hadhaleen, 26, who records the confrontation while wearing a black t-shirt, attempt to continue the burial rites despite the escalating tension. The incident reflects broader patterns of violence and restriction in Masafer Yatta, an area facing ongoing settler expansion and military enforcement. The community mourns under surveillance, denied space for grief in a region marked by decades of conflict and occupation. Credit: Khadija Toufik / Middle East Images via AFP)