A well-known Palestinian activist, Odeh Hathalin, was shot and killed on Monday during an attack by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, according to local journalists and officials.
Hathalin, who served as a consultant on the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, was reportedly standing near his village when he was hit by a bullet.
Yuval Abraham, the Israeli journalist and co-director of *No Other Land*, was the first to report the shooting. He said, “He was shot in the upper body and was in critical condition.” The Palestinian health ministry later confirmed that Hathalin died from his injuries.
The incident happened near the village of Umm al-Khair, close to Hebron. A video shared online showed a gunman firing a handgun in the area where Hathalin was said to have been killed.
The Israeli police said they arrived at the scene and arrested an Israeli civilian for questioning. They did not release the name of the suspect.
Israeli media reports named the suspected shooter as Yinon Levi, a known extremist who has previously been sanctioned by the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
The Israeli military said in a statement, “Terrorists hurled rocks toward Israeli civilians near Carmel,” which is a settlement close to the scene of the shooting.
Basel Adra, a Palestinian journalist and co-director of *No Other Land*, said Hathalin was his close friend. He wrote on Instagram, “He was standing in front of the community settler 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 had long worked with international activists and journalists in the West Bank. He was also part of a recent interfaith tour and had travelled to California, but he was deported at San Francisco airport after his visa was cancelled.
His death is one of many reported in the West Bank since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. The United Nations says at least 964 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since then — with many of the deaths blamed on both Israeli forces and settlers.
No Other Land, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary, was directed by an Israeli-Palestinian team including Abraham, Adra, Hamdan Ballal, and Rachel Szor. It tells the story of a Palestinian family whose home was destroyed as they faced displacement by Israeli authorities.
Earlier this year, Ballal was also attacked and dragged from an ambulance by Israeli soldiers, before being beaten and detained. He was released after international calls from the film community.
