Bay Area lawmakers, groups express outrage at killing of Palestinian filmmaker who was denied entry at San Francisco airport
By Thomas Hughes, Bay City News
Bay Area lawmakers and human rights activists condemned the killing on Monday of a Palestinian activist and filmmaker in the West Bank allegedly shot by an Israeli man who was in the area illegally.
Awdah Hathaleen was allegedly shot in the lung by an Israeli man who was previously sanctioned by former President Joe Biden’s administration for leading violent groups and attacks in the West Bank.
President Donald Trump’s administration removed those financial sanctions in January, along with those of other Israelis illegally occupying the West Bank, who are often called “settlers.”
Hathaleen was an English teacher and father of three who collaborated on the Oscar-winning 2025 documentary “No Other Land,” which details violence perpetrated by Israelis occupying parts of the West Bank as they remove residents from their homes and build on land that is not theirs, in violation of international law.
He was denied entry to the United States in June to discuss such violence, despite being granted a visa. He was detained at San Francisco International Airport and sent back to the West Bank. His trip was reportedly to speak at conferences, not to seek asylum, as he was dedicated to protecting his West Bank neighborhood, Masafer Yatta, from intruders.
U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Oakland, said in a statement that she was “heartbroken” to hear about Hathaleen’s death and was still seeking answers from the U.S. State Department about why he was denied entry in June.
“Just last month, I joined my Bay Area colleagues in demanding answers from the Administration after Awdah and his cousin, both holding valid visas, were unjustly detained and deported from SFO while traveling to my district for a multicultural faith dialogue,” she said.
Simon called for the alleged perpetrator, Yinon Levi, to be held accountable and called on the State Department to complete a full investigation into the killing.
A video circulating online showed Levi confronting a group of people with an excavator working behind him before he fired several shots with a pistol. The video stayed on Levi and did not show Hathaleen being struck.
The State Department had not issued a formal statement on the shooting as of Wednesday afternoon. Tammy Bruce, the State Department’s spokesperson, offered a rambling, semi-coherent response to a reporter’s question when asked about the case at her press briefing on Tuesday.
“Well, of course, I think it’s — it needs to be said, it shouldn’t have to be said, but we decry the loss of life everywhere,” Bruce said. “That has been the hallmark of the work that this administration is doing. It is at top of mind for Secretary Rubio and all of us who work here at the State Department for a reason — because we care about what happens with other people. Here certainly we care it about — it is an
American First framework, but that value is about peace around the world as well, which also helps us,” Bruce said.
She then incorrectly attributed the killing as having happened in Gaza and dismissed it as violence inherent to a “war zone.” When corrected on the location, Bruce said the differentiation was irrelevant and talked about a mass shooting Monday in Manhattan.
U.S. Rep. John Garamendi, D-Fairfield, said in a statement that the Trump administration’s removal of sanctions against Israelis who had been identified as violent was partly to blame.
“Violence by Israeli settlers against peaceful Palestinians has been all too common and we must demand accountability,” Garamendi said. “Unfortunately, this administration has shown little interest in pushing for peace. On day one of his second term, President Trump repealed sanctions on 30 Israeli settlers and settler organizations accused of engaging in violence in the West Bank. One of those settlers allegedly shot Hathaleen. Lifting sanctions on the very individuals who perpetrate these unacceptable acts only emboldens violent settlers and sends a signal that the United States won’t hold violent actors accountable.”
The Council of American-Islamic Relations, known as CAIR, mourned Hathaleen’s death and condemned the ongoing violence in the West Bank.
“We mourn alongside his family and the Bay Area communities who had hoped to hear his story firsthand,” said Zahra Billoo, the executive director of CAIR’s San Francisco Bay Area office.
“The U.S. government must be held accountable — not only for denying entry to Hathaleen when he sought to speak truth to power here, but also for continuing to fund and shield a regime that enables this violence,” Billoo said.
The peace activist group Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area called for justice in the killing, and said that Hathaleen’s funeral had been interrupted by Israeli soldiers who disbursed mourners and journalists covering the event.
“Awdah was a friend to many in the Bay Area. His family welcomed numerous international solidarity activists to Umm al-Khair, including many Jewish activists. All who knew Awdah will remember delicious meals, his boisterous laughter even in the face of unimaginable oppression, and his great love and tenderness toward his young sons,” the organization said.
About 650 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank between January 2024 and June 2025, including 121 children, according to the United Nations.
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