On Tuesday, August 12th, Mekorot and the Civil Administration repaired a water pipe in Umm al-Kheir that had been damaged the previous week by the infrastructure company owned by settler Yinon Levi.
About two weeks earlier, settlers brought a bulldozer onto public land next to the village. Residents feared the machine would damage their water and electricity lines. While attempting to stop the work and prevent Mr. Levi, the bulldozer’s owner, from harming the infrastructure, Levi opened fire toward the village, killing Awdah Hathaleen.
The work continued after Mr. Hathaleen’s death. On August 4th, at the request of the residents, attorney Michael Sfard, acting on behalf of Peace Now, sent a letter to the Civil Administration calling for the village’s water and electricity lines to be marked and fenced to prevent damage. Later that same day, the bulldozer operator struck the water pipe, cutting off the village’s supply until today, as Israel is in the midst of a historic heat wave.
Work continued even after the death of Odeh, and on August 4th, at the request of village residents, lawyer Michael Sfard, acting on behalf of Peace Now, sent a letter to the Civil Administration demanding that the village’s water and electricity pipes be marked and fenced off to prevent damage.
That same day, the bulldozer operator struck the main water pipe, cutting off the village’s supply. In a functioning system of governance, the company responsible – in this case, owned by Yinon Levy – would have been obliged to repair the damage immediately and halt work until water was restored to residents’ homes. That did not happen.
Odeh Hadalin’s body has not been released, but Yinon Levi’s bulldozer is back at work in Umm al Kheir. Yesterday, we sent a letter to the Civil Administration requesting that the work not damage the village’s water pipe. And, surprise! The bulldozer “accidentally” broke the pipe. pic.twitter.com/0p0fNRyJBi
— Peace Now (@peacenowisrael) August 5, 2025
Over several scorching days in the South Hebron Hills, villagers tried to reconnect the pipe themselves. But settlers from Carmel settlement and Issachar Mann from the illegal outpost of “Mann Farm” arrived daily to block the repairs.
תראו את החיוך על הפרצוף של המתנחל יששכר מן בזמן שהוא חוסם בגופו צינור מים לכפר שלם בלב המדבר.
יששכר, שגר במאחז הלא חוקי משק מן, הגיע היום לאום אל חי׳ר כדי לחסום את העבודות לתיקון צינור המים ששבר חברו ינון לוי (לאחר שירה בתושב הכפר עודה הדאלין).
אין גבול לאכזריות של המתנחלים. pic.twitter.com/V8C74FOzku
— שלום עכשיו (@PeaceNowIL) August 10, 2025
On August 11th, lawyer Snir Klein, from Sfard’s office, sent an urgent letter to the Civil Administration demanding the immediate repair of the pipes, along with a formal warning ahead of legal action.
This morning, Civil Administration officials arrived and allowed the residents to carry out the repairs. The water is now running again.
Regrettably, as with the killing of Odeh Hathaleen, the injustice toward the residents of Umm al-Khair persists – perpetrated by settlers from Carmel and from the illegal outposts of Meitarim and Man Farm.