Israeli politicians criticize creators of NAZA film about the war in Gaza
In Israel, politicians and public figures criticized Israeli directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, whose documentary NAZA about the war in Gaza won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. As The Jerusalem Post reports, the debate intensified after the Israel Defense Forces rejected the film’s key claims.
Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar said he would seek to strip Abraham and Szor of their Israeli citizenship, calling their actions “an act of treason.” The film, first shown at the Venice Film Festival, is based on interviews with 24 Israelis presented as military personnel and intelligence officers who took part in Israel’s war against Hamas.
Israeli army’s position
The creators of NAZA claim that Israel’s target selection practices led to systematic mass civilian casualties in Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces rejected these accusations, stating that the film relies on anonymous testimonies whose identities, military service, positions, and involvement in the described events cannot be independently verified. The military also questioned claims by junior service members about strategic decisions that, according to the army’s assessment, were outside their remit.
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Politicians’ reaction
Former Likud Knesset member Tally Gotliv called the film fiction and criticized Defense Minister Israel Katz and Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir for what she viewed as an insufficiently tough response. Yisrael Beiteinu party leader Avigdor Lieberman accused the directors of conducting a campaign to slander Israel and the Israel Defense Forces.
Former Israeli Chief of the General Staff Gadi Eisenkot called the portrayal of the war in the film distorted and one-sided. Arab-Israeli activist Yoseph Haddad also condemned the directors, stating that their international award is not a source of Israeli pride.
At the same time, Naama Lazimi, a lawmaker from the Democrats party, criticized not the film but Zohar’s proposal to strip its creators of citizenship. She called such an initiative madness and made a number of accusations against Israel’s current government.
