Why is Israel so freaked out by this film?

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SoundTikTok sound · News23 News / Incident / Suspense(900450)

Why it worked

The video likely resonated due to its provocative subject matter and the speaker's personal connection to the issue, framing the documentary as a confession that challenges deeply held beliefs and narratives of impunity.

Summary

This video discusses the documentary "NAZA" and the controversy surrounding it, particularly in Israel. It explains that the film features Israeli soldiers confirming alleged war crimes in Gaza, and how its reception at the Venice Film Festival led to accusations against the filmmakers. The speaker argues that the film's danger to Israel lies in its confirmation of truths that are inconvenient to the Israeli government and Western audiences, challenging narratives of impunity.

Structure

1Introduction of the documentary "NAZA" and its controversial premise.
2Discussion of the film's reception and the backlash it has faced.
3Explanation of why the film is considered dangerous by Israel, focusing on Western audiences' reluctance to accept certain truths.
4Personal reflection on growing up in a Zionist culture and the process of unlearning ingrained beliefs.
5Conclusion on how the film disrupts narratives of impunity and challenges Western consensus.

Product placement

NAZA: a documentary film that features Israeli soldiers confirming their army is deliberately massacring civilians in Gaza. It is the subject of the video and its existence is central to the narrative. Removing it would change the entire video. AJ+: a media outlet that produces content. It appears as a watermark and in the creator's handle and bio link. Removing it would not change the video's narrative. Venice Film Festival: a film festival where the documentary NAZA was received. It appears as a location and event. Removing it would not change the video's narrative. Benjamin Netanyahu: Prime Minister of Israel, who is quoted in the video. His role is as a speaker. Removing him would change the video's narrative. Tony Karon: AJ+ Editorial Lead, who is speaking in the video. His role is as a narrator. Removing him would change the video's narrative. Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor: Israeli filmmakers of the documentary NAZA. They are mentioned as the creators of the film. Removing them would change the video's narrative. Miki Zohar: a government minister who is quoted in the video. His role is as a speaker. Removing him would change the video's narrative. International Court of Justice: an international court that has charged Israel. It is mentioned as an authority. Removing it would not change the video's narrative. Holocaust scholars: scholars who have charged Israel. They are mentioned as authorities. Removing them would not change the video's narrative. Israeli human rights groups: groups that have charged Israel. They are mentioned as authorities. Removing them would not change the video's narrative. Citizen Osama: a Palestinian documentary about surviving genocide. It is mentioned as a point of comparison. Removing it would not change the video's narrative.

Original caption

Why is Israel so threatened by this documentary? Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor received a record-setting standing ovation for their new film NAZA at the Venice Film Festival. Now, a government minister is threatening to strip them of citizenship and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has released a statement condemning their film. AJ+ Editorial Lead Tony Karon says NAZA disrupts a narrative that has protected Israel’s impunity in the West for decades. #Venice #Documentary #Film #Festival #Naza

More from @ajplus

On-screen text

NAZA TONY KARON AJ+ Editorial Lead Why is Israel so freaked out by this film? NAZA is a documentary featuring Israeli soldiers confirming their army is deliberately massacring civilians in Gaza. Its rapturous reception at the Venice Film Festival led to the Israeli filmmakers, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, being accused of treason, of fanning antisemitism. They were even threatened with being stripped of their citizenship. BENJAMIN NETANYAHU Prime Minister of Israel And now two Israeli directors are portraying the IDF as war criminals. SO WHY IS THIS FILM CONSIDERED SO DANGEROUS BY ISRAEL? Well, because it confirms the truth that they don't want the world to hear. Many Western audiences have refused to believe that truth when it's told by the victims of that genocide - by the Palestinians who have suffered it. Yes, it's true: NAZA got far more attention in Venice than a Palestinian documentary about surviving the genocide did. Refusing to believe Palestinians is a disgraceful, racist and colonial attitude that's deeply embedded in Western societies, where charges of genocide are often dismissed as antisemitic. And it's that Western fantasy that creates impunity for Israel's war crimes. But while racist, colonial mindsets allow many in the West to dismiss Palestinian accounts of the genocide, their mindset is threatened when the same truth is being told by the perpetrators that they're actually identifying with. NAZA IS A CONFESSION: Israeli officers on camera confirming for the world the truth of what Palestinians, the International Court of Justice and even Israeli human rights groups and Holocaust scholars have charged: Israel is committing genocide. And by bursting the bubble of denial, it challenges audiences who have been shamefully willing to ignore Palestinian voices for too long. I KNOW THIS FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: I was raised in a Zionist culture that denied Israel's foundational crimes. I was told that the story of the Nakba was a lie concocted by people who hated Jews. But when I began, as a teenager, reading the accounts of Jewish Israelis who had actually carried out the crimes of the Nakba, I could no longer believe that these were lies told by antisemites. Because of the racism of my Zionist upbringing. I needed to hear the truth from voices I would trust to recognize the lies I'd been told. NAZA disrupts the narrative of impunity and potentially weakens the Western consensus that enables the genocide. Western powers have evaded the truth of Israel's campaign because even their own laws forbid them from arming and enabling a genocide. But the perpetrators' confessions make it impossible to deny the reality of the genocide among those who dismiss stories when they come from the victims. THAT'S WHY IT'S SO DANGEROUS TO ISRAEL AND THAT'S THE POWER OF THIS FILM.

Transcript

Why is Israel so freaked out by this film? NAZA is a documentary featuring Israeli soldiers confirming their army is deliberately massacring civilians in Gaza. Its rapturous reception at the Venice Film Festival led to the Israeli filmmakers, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, being accused of treason, of fanning antisemitism. They were even threatened with being stripped of their citizenship. And now two Israeli directors are portraying the IDF as war criminals. So why is this film considered so dangerous by Israel? Well, because it confirms the truth that they don't want the world to hear. Many Western audiences have refused to believe that truth when it's told by the victims of that genocide - by the Palestinians who have suffered it. Yes, it's true: NAZA got far more attention in Venice than a Palestinian documentary about surviving the genocide did. Refusing to believe Palestinians is a disgraceful, racist and colonial attitude that's deeply embedded in Western societies, where charges of genocide are often dismissed as antisemitic. And it's that Western fantasy that creates impunity for Israel's war crimes. But while racist, colonial mindsets allow many in the West to dismiss Palestinian accounts of the genocide, their mindset is threatened when the same truth is being told by the perpetrators that they're actually identifying with. NAZA IS A CONFESSION: Israeli officers on camera confirming for the world the truth of what Palestinians, the International Court of Justice and even Israeli human rights groups and Holocaust scholars have charged: Israel is committing genocide. And by bursting the bubble of denial, it challenges audiences who have been shamefully willing to ignore Palestinian voices for too long. I KNOW THIS FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: I was raised in a Zionist culture that denied Israel's foundational crimes. I was told that the story of the Nakba was a lie concocted by people who hated Jews. But when I began, as a teenager, reading the accounts of Jewish Israelis who had actually carried out the crimes of the Nakba, I could no longer believe that these were lies told by antisemites. Because of the racism of my Zionist upbringing. I needed to hear the truth from voices I would trust to recognize the lies I'd been told. NAZA disrupts the narrative of impunity and potentially weakens the Western consensus that enables the genocide. Western powers have evaded the truth of Israel's campaign because even their own laws forbid them from arming and enabling a genocide. But the perpetrators' confessions make it impossible to deny the reality of the genocide among those who dismiss stories when they come from the victims. THAT'S WHY IT'S SO DANGEROUS TO ISRAEL AND THAT'S THE POWER OF THIS FILM.