{"id":598607,"date":"2026-09-13T01:04:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-13T01:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/598607\/"},"modified":"2026-09-13T01:04:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T01:04:10","slug":"naza-documentary-wins-special-jury-prize-in-venice-with-gaza-war-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/598607\/","title":{"rendered":"‘NAZA’ documentary wins Special Jury Prize in Venice with Gaza war claims"},"content":{"rendered":"

Israeli directors and journalists Yuval Abraham<\/a> and Rachel Szor\u2019s documentary NAZA won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival<\/a> on Saturday.<\/p>\n

The film, which takes its title from the Israeli military acronym for \u201ccollateral damage<\/a>,\u201d is based on interviews with 24 Israeli soldiers and officers who the filmmakers say were involved in planning and operating systems used during the war in Gaza. The documentary alleges that Israel\u2019s military operations have resulted in systematic mass civilian casualties. Israel has rejected the allegations.<\/p>\n

The IDF Spokesperson\u2019s Unit on Friday categorically rejected the claims raised in the documentary, saying the film relied on anonymous testimonies from individuals whose identities and military roles could not be verified.<\/p>\n

\u201cAccording to the publications, the film relies on anonymous testimonies from individuals whose identities cannot be verified, including whether they served in the IDF, in what capacity, or whether they were involved in the matters about which the allegations are being made,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

The military said the documentary included claims regarding national and military strategy that were \u201cclearly beyond the knowledge of junior-level soldiers,\u201d and said it contained references to situations in which IDF Intelligence Directorate soldiers allegedly interviewed for the film \u201cby definition would not have been involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TentsTents housing displaced Palestinians are seen among homes destroyed during the recent war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, September 3, 2026. (credit: Ali Hassan\/Flash90)IDF disputes allegations of deliberate civilian harm<\/p>\n

The IDF also criticized what it called the \u201cincorrect use of legal terminology by individuals who are not legal professionals,\u201d as well as \u201cinternal and absurd contradictions,\u201d including claims that unintended harm resulting from lawful attacks was carried out deliberately or constituted part of \u201cgenocide.\u201d<\/p>\n

The IDF said it operates in Gaza to protect Israeli civilians while targeting terrorist organizations, primarily Hamas, \u201cin accordance with international law and the laws of armed conflict.\u201d The military said it strikes military targets and makes \u201cunprecedented efforts to minimize harm to civilians,\u201d while accusing Hamas of embedding its operatives and military infrastructure within civilian areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen specific suspicions of violations of the law by an IDF soldier arise, the IDF is fully committed to investigating them and bringing those responsible to justice through independent enforcement mechanisms,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

The military added that soldiers who witness potential violations must report them so investigations can be considered, including individuals interviewed for the documentary. Regarding allegations over the use of artificial intelligence in targeting decisions, the IDF said that \u201cdecisions regarding the selection and approval of strikes in the IDF are made by human personnel only, in accordance with IDF guidelines, and not by artificial intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n

The documentary received a lengthy standing ovation following its premiere screening on Thursday, with reports saying applause lasted 24 and a half minutes. It is the second consecutive year that a film focused on the Gaza war has drawn major attention at Venice, following The Voice of Hind Rajab, which tells the story of the killing of a Palestinian child during the conflict.<\/p>\n

Abraham responds to criticism of documentary<\/p>\n

Speaking after the award announcement, Abraham thanked the jury and addressed criticism of the film in Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m thinking of all the people, the Israeli politicians and journalists back home, who are now attacking this film, and denying it without even seeing it,\u201d Abraham said. \u201cAnd so much is being done to ask us to not look at reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abraham said the Israeli intelligence officers interviewed for the documentary described the killing of Palestinians in Gaza as systematic rather than accidental.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the Israeli intelligence officers we spoke with told us that this mass killing is systemic. Not by accident. But by design,\u201d he said. \u201cActions of murder and policies that are based on total dehumanization of Palestinians.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that Palestinian journalists had documented events in Gaza from the beginning of the war and accused Israel of silencing their voices.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis truth has been documented and known from the very first day, thanks to Palestinian journalists,\u201d Abraham said. \u201cMore than 200 of them were killed by Israel in Gaza. Their voices were silenced and denied.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that the denial of a crime is what helps it persist,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Abraham calls for international audiences to watch documentary<\/p>\n

Abraham called on audiences in Israel, Europe, and the United States to watch the film, saying it was particularly important for Israelis because \u201cit\u2019s our country that is doing these crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really important that Europeans watch it, especially here in Italy, because your government and the German government are blocking pressure<\/a> on Israel that can end this,\u201d Abraham said, adding that it is also important \u201cthat Americans watch it, because that country is funding much of the killing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reuters contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Israeli directors and journalists Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor\u2019s documentary NAZA won the Special Jury Prize at the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":598608,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[859,156,280370,16945,52752,9747,5873,280369,409,111,139,69,2200],"class_list":["post-598607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-documentary","tag-entertainment","tag-film-festival","tag-gaza","tag-gaza-war","tag-hamas","tag-israel","tag-israeli-film","tag-movies","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-venice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598607","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=598607"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598607\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/598608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=598607"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=598607"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=598607"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}