The Israeli Magistrate's Court in Jerusalem released Yinon Levy, a settler accused of killing Palestinian activist and teacher Odeh Al-Hathalin in the village of Umm Al-Khair in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron.
اضافة اعلان
Despite the killing being documented in video footage and Levy being previously sanctioned by the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom for his involvement in settler terrorism, the court placed him under house arrest.
Al-Hathalin, 31, was shot and killed by Levy on Monday as residents of Umm Al-Khair attempted to resist a bulldozer, accompanied by settlers, that had entered their agricultural lands. Another Palestinian was injured after being struck with the bulldozer’s hammer.
In response, the Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) issued a statement on Wednesday denouncing the court’s decision, calling it further evidence that the Israeli judicial system functions as a core pillar in entrenching what they described as Israel’s “barbaric regime.”
The PPS stated that this decision reinforces a culture of impunity and provides a legal shield for perpetrators of crimes against the Palestinian people. It emphasized that Israeli courts, including military tribunals, are used by the occupation to legitimize violations, reinforce control over Palestinian land and people, and deny their fundamental rights through a judicial system that is discriminatory and oppressive in nature.
The organization described the release of the settler and his appearance in court as a clear incitement for settlers to commit further killings of Palestinians.
It added that the decision comes as no surprise, citing dozens or even hundreds of extrajudicial executions and deliberate killings carried out by Israeli soldiers and settlers without accountability, further entrenching impunity and fostering an environment that enables more crimes.
The PPS underscored that the Israeli judiciary has been fully exposed during the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people, pointing to daily evidence of the deeply entrenched racism of the system. It noted that had the case involved a Palestinian, the court would have likely sentenced them to life imprisonment, demolished their home, and punished their entire family.
In contrast, and as part of Israel’s systemic discrimination and apartheid policies, Israeli forces arrested several members of Al-Hathalin’s family this morning in Umm Al-Khair, Masafer Yatta.
The PPS called on the Palestinian national movement to adopt a strategic decision to boycott the Israeli judicial system, which it says has institutionalized extreme brutality, particularly since the onset of the current war of annihilation. It also urged for intensified legal and human rights efforts internationally to hold perpetrators accountable and to end the extraordinary immunity granted to Israel.
The organization further appealed to the international community to impose clear sanctions on the Israeli occupation authorities and push to isolate them legally and politically. It asserted that the ongoing genocide and large-scale crimes against the Palestinian people pose a direct threat to global human values, with consequences reaching far beyond the Palestinian context.
The PPS emphasized that Masafer Yatta is a glaring example of Israel’s colonial and forced displacement policies. In recent years—particularly since the beginning of the genocide—the region has witnessed a surge in systematic violence, including extrajudicial killings, destruction and theft of civilian property, mass arrests (including of women and children), and the imposition of exorbitant fines as a condition for the release of detainees. All of this, the PPS said, is part of a strategy aimed at emptying the land of its indigenous population.
It is worth noting that Odeh Al-Hathalin was one of the contributors to the Oscar-winning documentary "No Other Land" (2025 Best Feature Documentary), which highlights the forced displacement of Palestinians in Masafer Yatta, particularly the demolition of their homes by Israeli authorities.
