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Rabat – “No Other Land”, a documentary that chronicles the Israeli destruction of the Occupied West Bank, won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature Film last night at the 97th Academy Awards, which took place in Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre.
This documentary was made by a Palestinian-Israeli joint collective made up of Palestinian journalists, activists Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal along with Israeli investigative journalist Yuval Abraham and Israeli Cinematographer Rachel Szor.
The documentary specifically depicts the destruction and ethnic cleansing in the Occupied West Bank, namely in Masafer Yatta, a collection of 19 Palestinian hamlets south of the city of Hebron (Al Khalil). The film consists mostly of camera footage and a narrative produced by Basel Adra as he resists the demolition of his disappearing hometown, which Israel intends turning into a military training zone.
While this documentary was the result of contributions by both Palestinains and Israelis, their fight is by no means equal; which is something that Yuval Abraham touched upon in his acceptance speech. “When I look at Basel, I see my brother, but we are not equal. We live in a regime where I am free under civilian law, and that still is under military laws that destroy his life and he cannot control,” the Israeli journalist said.
“About two months ago I became a father, and my hope to my daughter is that she will not have to live the same life I’m living now; always fearing settler violence, home demolitions, and forcible displacements that my community Masafer Yatta is living and facing every day under military occupation,” said Basel Adra.
Upon receiving the Oscar nomination, the Palestinian activist said in an interview with independent outlet Democracy Now that his goal has never been the awards: “We want people to see the reality, to see what’s going on in my community in Masafer Yatta, but [also] in all the West Bank to Palestinians and their life under this brutal occupation.”
Despite being one of the most critically acclaimed documentaries of 2024 and having been picked up for distribution in 24 countries, no US distributor has dared touch it given the subject matter – reflecting the country’s biased policy towards Palestine.
Up until the Oscar nomination, Adra filmed a group of illegal Israeli settlers terrorizing his community by assaulting residents and destroying their vehicles and water tanks. While such hostile acts are commonplace in the occupied West Bank, there has been a noticeable escalation of violence amid what Israel has dubbed “Operation Iron Wall.”
Following the ceasefire in Gaza that came into effect on January 19, Israeli Occupation Forces and Israeli settlers launched a series of intensified raids across the West Bank.. These raids have displaced roughly 40,000 Palestinians across Jenin, Tulkarem, Nur Shams and El Far’a Camps by early February, according to the data from the United Nations.
