Illegal Israeli settler remained free after killing Palestinian in occupied West Bank: rights group
It added that witness testimony and open-source material indicated Levi returned to the village three days later to continue excavation work, while Israeli authorities withheld Hathaleen’s body for about 10 days.
It accused Israeli forces and police of “operational alignment with the settlers’ actions,” alleging they protected the Israelis involved and failed to take law enforcement measures against them.
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The report also said video footage showed Israelis obstructing an ambulance attempting to reach Hathaleen, while Levi pointed out Palestinian residents to Israeli forces, who subsequently detained them.
Al-Haq said its investigation synchronised and geolocated more than 60 videos, photographs and witness testimonies, cross-checking them with legal interviews and spatial evidence.
Army raids memorial event
The Israeli army raided the community centre in Umm al-Kheir on Tuesday during an event marking the first anniversary of Hathaleen’s killing.
Local activists, foreign and Israeli supporters, and journalists had gathered for the memorial, village council head Khalil Hathaleen told Anadolu.
“The Israeli army stormed the centre, declared the area a ‘closed military zone’ and demanded that the event be ended, but the participants completed it,” he said.
He said Israeli soldiers also assaulted Ofer Cassif, a member of the Israeli Knesset from the left-wing Hadash party, during the raid.
Following Hathaleen’s killing last year, the Israeli army prevented the village from holding a mourning gathering and forced mourners, journalists and supporters to leave after declaring the area a “closed military zone.”
Hathaleen was a teacher with the Palestinian education ministry and the father of three children, the eldest of whom was six at the time of his death.
He also contributed to the production of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, which won the 2025 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature and chronicles Israel’s displacement of Palestinians and home demolitions in Masafer Yatta.
