14/46
I saw it at the Movies That Matter 2024 film festival in The Hague
Synopsis
This film, made by a Palestinian-Israeli collective, shows the destruction of the Masafer Yatta in the occupied West Bank by Israeli soldiers and the alliance that develops between Palestinian activist Basel and Israeli journalist Yuval. Impressive and unique images of what is happening in the West Bank, particularly relevant today when our newspapers and talk shows are focused on Gaza. As a logical consequence, the West Bank does not really exist for us, despite many similarities. In both areas, Israeli policy is constantly turning the law against the people living there. And we, from a safe distance, let this happen and easily ignore the constant suffering and humiliation of the Palestinians.
What happens in the West Bank is rarely shown on TV or written about in newspapers
The images in the film in question are unique and expose how Israel turns the law against itself. They completely disregard the villagers and their legitimate property, forcing entire families to move into caves, with no better options, while their homes are destroyed one by one. Every time the army and the bulldozers arrive, it is uncertain until the last moment which houses will be destroyed. The soldiers accompanying the bulldozers are informed that the people there live in illegally built houses. Therefore, it is useless to shout at the soldiers and appeal to their consciences, as they are spineless tools.
The politics behind the forced evacuation are appalling
The soldiers repeatedly tell the resisting people that they only had to ask for a permit from the army and everything would be solved (but the villagers know, and we know, that such a permit will never be issued). We learned from secret documents that the annexation of this piece of land was not intended to create a training area for the army, as repeatedly claimed by the invaders. Instead, its sole purpose was to prevent the village from expanding. One question that came up during the Q&A session was whether and how this footage could be used in a judicial investigation to establish war crimes against the Palestinians. What was new to me was that a significant portion of the soldiers involved are internationals, not native Israelis.
Based on this footage, they could be identified
Their actions could be prosecuted, as it is generally considered illegal how Israel comes up with these eviction orders. During the Q&A session, a very different important question was asked: how do you explain all this to children? Denial is impossible, as they see it happening before their eyes. In any case, all of this leaves us speechless as we leave the venue after the screening. This has been going on for many years and still happens, as shown here.
See the full schedule for the 62nd New York Film Festival this fall
It has been reinforced even since the Gaza war, when the settlers living nearby are even more than happy to help with the evictions, feeling entitled to revenge after October 7th.