Palestinian Documentary Filmmaker Attacked and Detained in West Bank
In a troubling incident on Monday, the Palestinian co-director of the acclaimed documentary “No Other Land,” Hamdan Ballal, was reportedly attacked by a group of settlers and subsequently arrested by the Israeli army in the occupied West Bank. This news was shared by his co-director, Yuval Abraham, on social media platform X.
Abraham stated that Ballal suffered injuries to his head and stomach and was bleeding after the attack. He mentioned that when Ballal called for an ambulance, Israeli soldiers entered the vehicle and took him away. Since then, there has been no information about his whereabouts.
This incident occurred in the village of Susiya, located in the southern part of the West Bank. Members from the anti-occupation group, Center for Jewish Nonviolence, witnessed the events and recorded them.
In response to inquiries from the media, the Israeli army said they were looking into the matter. It’s important to note that Israel has maintained military control over the West Bank since 1967.
The documentary “No Other Land,” which highlights the story of a young Palestinian facing forced displacement, recently won the award for Best Documentary at this year’s Academy Awards. It was filmed in Masafer Yatta, an area that the Israeli army declared a restricted military zone in the 1980s.
The West Bank, outside of the Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem, is home to about three million Palestinians and nearly half a million Israelis living in settlements that are considered illegal under international law.
