Masafer Yatta, occupied West Financial institution – Awdah Hathaleen was standing by a fence within the Umm al-Kheir neighborhood centre when he was shot within the chest by an Israeli settler on Monday.
The beloved 31-year-old activist and father of three fell to the bottom as individuals rushed over to attempt to assist him. Then an ambulance got here out of the close by unlawful settlement of Carmel and took him away.
Israeli authorities have refused to launch his physique for burial, merely telling his household on Monday night time that he had died, depriving them of the closure of laying him to relaxation instantly, as Islam dictates.
Mourning
Beneath the scorching solar of the South Hebron Hills, the individuals of Umm al-Kheir had been joined by anti-occupation activists from everywhere in the world – gathered in silence to mourn Awdah, who was a key determine in non-violent resistance towards settler violence in Masafer Yatta.
They got here collectively in the identical yard the place Awdah was standing when he was shot to loss of life by Israeli settler Yinon Levi, who later mentioned, “I’m glad I did it,” in keeping with witnesses.
Rocks had been laid in a circle round Awdah’s blood on the bottom, mourners stopping there as if paying their respects.
Across the circle, the elders sat in silence, ready for information that didn’t arrive on whether or not Awdah’s physique could be returned by the Israeli military.
There’s a feeling of shock that Awdah, out of all individuals, was the one murdered in chilly blood, his cousin Eid Hathaleen, 41, informed Al Jazeera about his “actually beloved” relative.
“There was [nobody] who contributed as a lot to the neighborhood in Umm al-Kheir as Awdah,” Alaa Hathaleen, 26, Awdah’s cousin and brother-in-law, mentioned.
“I can’t imagine that tomorrow I’ll get up and Awdah received’t be right here.”
Awdah had three kids – five-year-old Watan, four-year-old Muhammad, and seven-month-old Kinan – and he liked them above all the pieces else on this planet, a number of of his associates and kinfolk informed Al Jazeera.
“He was a fantastic father,” Alaa mentioned. “The youngsters would go to him greater than to their mom.”
Awdah received married in 2019, Jewish Italian activist Micol Hassan informed Al Jazeera over the telephone. “His wedding ceremony was a lovely event in 2019. We organised vehicles that got here from throughout Palestine [for it].
“He liked his kids a lot,” she continued. “Each time he put them to sleep, they cried and requested the place their daddy was.”
Hassan, who has been barred from returning to the occupied West Financial institution by Israeli authorities, additionally fondly recalled how a lot Awdah liked espresso and the way she would carry him packs of Italian espresso at any time when she was capable of get to Umm al-Kheir.
Awdah additionally liked soccer, taking part in it each probability he received, regardless that Umm al-Kheir’s services are badly degraded and all of the villagers have is a paved yard with dilapidated goalposts.
In truth, Awdah’s final breaths had been on that very same battered soccer pitch, probably the one place within the village the place he spent essentially the most time.
Regardless of how unhealthy settler assaults had been, Alaa mentioned, Awdah would sit down with him and talk about their projections and hopes for his favorite workforce, Spanish aspect Actual Madrid.
“His love for Actual Madrid ran in his veins,” Alaa added. “Perhaps in the event that they knew how a lot he liked them, Actual Madrid would discuss Masafer Yatta.”
Peaceable activist and ‘radical humanist’
Awdah has been an activist since he was 17 years outdated, working to cease the Israeli makes an attempt to expel the villagers of Masafer Yatta from their houses and lands.
He hosted numerous visiting activists who got here to the occupied West Financial institution to help Palestinian activists and villagers, serving to them perceive the state of affairs on the bottom and embracing their presence along with his trademark hospitality.
Maybe his most well-known such collaboration was his work with Basel Adra and Yuval Abraham, who co-directed No Different Land, a documentary movie that received an Oscar award this 12 months.
Everybody who spoke to Al Jazeera remembers him because the kindest individual, with a courageous, peaceable coronary heart.
He was “tayyeb, salim”, they mentioned, utilizing the Arabic phrases for “form” and “peaceable”.
Awdah would inform anybody who got here to Umm al-Kheir that he didn’t select to be an activist; it simply occurred, Hassan informed Al Jazeera, including that he welcomed everybody, no matter religion or citizenship.
“He was a radical humanist,” she mentioned.
“He wished the occupation to finish with out struggling,” mentioned Alaa, including that Awdah all the time thought of what the longer term would carry for his kids and others.
He selected to change into an English trainer due to that, Eid informed Al Jazeera. He wished the village kids to develop up educated and capable of inform the world their story in English, so they may attain extra individuals.
“He taught all his college students to like and welcome everybody no matter their religion and origin,” mentioned Eid.
A bunch of his college students – he taught English from grades one by means of 9 within the native college – huddled collectively in the neighborhood centre yard among the many mourners, remembering their trainer.
“He would all the time attempt to make courses enjoyable,” mentioned Mosab, 9 years outdated.
“He made us snicker,” added his classmate Mohammed, 11.
Murdered by a raging settler
Umm al-Kheir is one in all greater than 30 villages and hamlets within the West Financial institution’s Masafer Yatta, a area that, greater than any, has seen the implications of the growth of settlements and violence linked to it.
The incident that led as much as Awdah’s killing started the day earlier than, recounted activist Mattan Berner-Kadish, who had been in Umm al-Kheir offering protecting presence to the Palestinian neighborhood.
A digger was to be delivered to the unlawful settlement, and the villagers had agreed to coordinate the passage of the equipment with the settlers, to forestall any injury to village infrastructure.
However the settler driving the equipment ran over a water pipe and commenced rolling over different infrastructure, threatening to roll into the city and trigger extra injury.
When villagers gathered to attempt to cease the equipment, the operator used the digger’s claw to hit one in all them within the head, dropping him to the bottom, semi-conscious.
Awdah was 10-15 metres (30-50 toes) away from the altercation, standing in the neighborhood centre yard, wanting on.
Within the chaos, gunshots began ringing out, and Berner-Kadish noticed Yinon Levi taking pictures at individuals. Amid the screams and panic, he realised that Awdah had been shot.
An Israeli settler simply shot Odeh Hadalin within the lungs, a exceptional activist who helped us movie No Different Land in Masafer Yatta. Residents recognized Yinon Levi, sanctioned by the EU and US, because the shooter. That is him within the video firing like loopy. pic.twitter.com/xH1Uo6L1wN
— Yuval Abraham יובל אברהם (@yuval_abraham) July 28, 2025
He tried to calm Levi down, telling him that he had immediately shot somebody and certain killed him. To which Levi responded: “I’m glad I did it.”
Berner-Kadish additionally tried to speak to the Israeli troopers who arrived on the scene, solely to listen to from three of them that they wished that they had been those to shoot Awdah.
Following the homicide, the Israeli military arrested 5 males from the Hathaleen household. On Tuesday, the Israeli military closed the realm round Umm al-Kheir, limiting any entry to it.
Additionally on Tuesday, Levi was launched to deal with arrest by Israeli courts, which charged him with negligent murder.
Levi was sanctioned by Canada, the UK and america for violent assaults on Palestinians.
The 5 Hathaleen males arrested after Awdah was killed are nonetheless in Israeli custody, Alaa informed Al Jazeera.
Weeping, he fretted: “What if [the Israelis] return [Awdah’s] physique they usually can’t pay their final tribute to them?”
