The world of cinema comes to the defense of NAZA. Since its consecration at the Venice Film Festival on September 12, the documentary has been the subject of heated controversy in Israel, where the Minister of Culture Miki Zohar announced that he wanted to withdraw the nationality of its authors, the journalists and filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. “Their burning self-hatred constitutes a betrayal of the state,” said the minister, who accuses them of wanting to call into question the actions of the army in Gaza. After these virulent declarations, more than 1,500 personalities from the industry signed a petition on Monday to express their solidarity with the two directors. Among them are big names in Israeli cinema, such as filmmakers Nadav Lapid, Ari Folman, Orna Ben-Dor Niv, Hagai Levi and Shlomi Elkabetz.
In this letter, consulted by the local press and relayed by the American magazine Variety, they call on “all those who are still fighting for freedom of expression and creation to join them”. “The essential role of art and journalism is to reflect the society in which we operate, to generate dialogue and debate without prejudice, even when reality is difficult,” add the authors. The latter believe that Rachel Szor and Yuval Abraham are currently undergoing an “unprecedented campaign of incitement and harassment”. “The line between this campaign and incitement to violence as well as physical threats against their lives is shrinking,” they say.
The petition also expresses the hope that the documentary will be broadcast in Israel, Haaretz media report, and “that everyone can watch it, form their own opinion and engage in a real initial debate on the war in Gaza and its consequences.” “The incendiary and violent speech against the creators of the film, who dared to express their opinion, should concern us all, whatever our opinions,” it says.
In Venice, the documentary won over all festival-goers, to the point of receiving the special jury prize and a record 25-minute ovation. In this work, the two Israeli filmmakers who won an Oscar in 2024 for No Other Land - a documentary dealing with the crimes of colonization in the West Bank - collect the anonymized testimonies of 24 soldiers, officers and intelligence members who participated in the war in Gaza. They describe the IDF's targeting mechanisms to assess "collateral damage", known as "naza" in Hebrew. A former soldier claims in the documentary that to reach a junior member of Hamas, the Israeli army allows itself up to twenty human casualties.
The IDF categorically rejected these accusations. She especially questions the identity of anonymous witnesses whose identity or functions she cannot verify. Gadi Eisenkot, a former chief of staff who became one of Benjamin Netanyahu's main rivals, condemned the NAZA story which, according to him, "sullies the name of our soldiers who are waging a just war against a cruel enemy who has massacred, raped and kidnapped to garner applause at festivals abroad." Naftali Bennett, candidate for the post of Prime Minister during this period of legislative elections in Israel, believes that NAZA is a “terrible accusation”. “The war in Gaza is terrible,” he added. The death of every child is a tragedy. But a terrible war is not genocide. »
For his part, the chief of staff of the Israeli Defense Forces, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, on Monday instructed the army's top legal official to initiate proceedings for "defamation" against the documentary. Despite threats from Israeli authorities, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor hope to be able to return to their country. “We live there, our lives, our families, our friends are there,” they said during their trip to Venice. Before adding: “We believe that there is a political solution and a better life for Palestinians and Israelis. »
