Venice Film Festival: Controversial Gaza film shocks at premiere
Venice. A docudrama about a Palestinian girl killed in the Gaza Strip, co-produced by Brad Pitt and Joaquin Phoenix, has caused a stir at the Venice Film Festival. The film "The Voice of Hind Rajab" by Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania is part of the competition and is scheduled to premiere on Wednesday.
The docudrama recounts the final moments in the life of Hind Rajab, a Palestinian girl in the Gaza Strip. She died in January 2024 while her family was attempting to escape from Gaza City. The film, as well as several independent investigations, suggest that she and members of her family were killed by Israeli forces.
The Israeli military denies carrying out the attack and said there were no troops on site at the time.
The film's central element, according to the Tunisian director, is a real telephone recording. While the girl was trapped in the car, which had already been shot at, among slain family members, she spent about three hours on the phone with volunteers from the Palestinian Red Crescent, pleading for help.
The rescuers, who set out after hours of coordination, were reportedly killed on their way to Hind Rajab. Subsequently, contact with Hind was lost, and she was recovered dead 12 days later, along with her family and paramedics.
The Gaza War influenced further festival events on Wednesday. Following "The Voice of Hind Rajab," the premiere of "In the Hand of Dante" was planned – a historical crime thriller directed by Jewish US director Julian Schnabel. Two of the actors, Israeli Gal Gadot and Briton Gerard Butler, had been subjected to hostility by pro-Palestinian activists before the festival began, who demanded their disinvitation.
Gadot, who was serving in Israel's military, had expressed solidarity with the Israeli victims after the Hamas terrorist attack and called for the release of the Israeli hostages. Butler had also publicly expressed her support for Israel in the past. They were not expected in Venice. Their management did not respond to a request for comment.
Director Schnabel said before the premiere: "I think there's no reason to boycott artists. I chose these actors for their performances, and they did an extraordinary job in the film." When asked, he declined to comment on "Hind Rajab" and the debate about the Gaza War at the festival.
The Gaza War was triggered by the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed in Israel and more than 250 others were abducted into the Gaza Strip, including children. Israel claims the attack was self-defense and has pledged to minimize harm to the civilian population. However, the high number of civilian casualties in the Gaza War has been internationally criticized.
The film crew in Venice expressed their sadness over Hind Rajab's fate and also used the press conference to make a political appeal. "Enough of this genocide," said Kaouther Ben Hania. Several actors also accused Israel of committing genocide in the fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Israel and the German government reject the accusation of genocide. According to the UN Convention, the term genocide refers to the intent to destroy a population group. Israel, by its own admission, seeks to destroy the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas, not the Palestinian people.
RND/dpa
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