Film industry condemns attack on Palestinian Oscar winner Hamdan Ballal

The National

25-03-2025

The global film community has condemned the attack of Oscar-winner Hamdan Ballal, allegedly by a mob of Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank on Monday night. Ballal, who is credited as co-director in the documentary No Other Land, was attacked in his village of Susya, according to Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, who is also one of the directors of the film. Susya features heavily in film, which follows the struggles faced by journalist Basel Adra as he and his community try to protect their West Bank village from Israeli settlers. Abraham said Ballal received injuries to his head and stomach. The activist group, Centre for Jewish Non-violence, said Ballal was being treated in an ambulance when Israeli soldiers detained him and a second Palestinian man. Their whereabouts are currently unknown. "We demand Ballal's immediate release and that his family and community be informed about his condition, location and the justification for his detention," the US-based International Documentary Association posted on Instagram. No Other Land won Best Feature Documentary at the IDA Awards in December. It's one of many accolades the film has received, including best documentary at the Berlin International Film Festival, the Gotham Awards and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards. Hollywood star Mark Ruffalo, who has been outspoken about his pro-Palestine, also reposted a news story about Ballal's attack on his Instagram stories. Ruffalo also shared a speech by Hacks star Hannah Einbinder in which she said she was "horrified by the Israeli government's massacre of well over 65,000 Palestinians in Gaza". Einbinder was speaking at an event where she was being honoured with the Visibility Award by Human Rights Campaign. "I am ashamed and infuriated that this mass murder is funded by our American tax dollars. It should not be controversial to say that we should all be against murdering civilians," she said. American comedian and actor Asif Ali also shared a story about Ballal's attack on his Instagram Stories. An online petition was also launched on Monday by filmmakers on change.org demanding Ballal's release. "We, members of the global film community, urgently appeal for the immediate release and safety of filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, co-director of No Other Land, the recipient of this year's Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature," the petition reads. "Reports that Mr Ballal was forcibly removed by the Israeli army from an ambulance following a brutal attack by settlers, and subsequently detained without clear information regarding his whereabouts, deeply alarm us. Such treatment of an internationally acclaimed filmmaker gravely undermines artistic freedom, human rights, and freedom of speech – core values vital to democratic societies. We urge immediate intervention to secure Ballal's safety, prompt release, access to his family and legal counsel." The more than 100 signatories include American documentary filmmakers Roger Ross Williams, Alex Gibney and Smriti Mundhra, as well as Brazilian director Julia Bacha, whose 2021 film Boycott looked at retaliatory laws against people and organisations engaged in boycotts of Israel-affiliated entities.