Rachel Szor and Yuval Abraham’s documentary “NAZA” has premiered at the Venice Film Festival, receiving a remarkable 24.5-minute standing ovation. The film focuses on Israel’s alleged utilization of AI-enhanced military technology to target and eliminate Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Video footage from the event captured emotional reactions from the Israeli filmmakers, with Abraham seen wiping away tears amidst the enthusiastic applause.
According to reports, the ovation for “NAZA” at Venice Film Festival has set a new record, surpassing the previous longest standing ovations for films like “The Voice of Hind Rajab” at last year’s festival and Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth” at Cannes in 2006. The film features testimonies from 24 Israeli military insiders, whose identities are kept anonymous, shedding light on the alleged deployment of surveillance systems and AI intelligence to identify and strike Hamas targets, irrespective of the presence of civilian families, including women and children.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have vehemently denied the allegations presented in the documentary, stating that decisions to conduct strikes are solely made by humans and emphasizing their efforts to minimize harm to civilians during military operations. The film’s title, “NAZA,” is derived from an Israeli military acronym for civilian casualties and serves as a companion piece to Abraham and Szor’s previous award-winning documentary, “No Other Land.”
The film has attracted attention for its critical portrayal of Israel’s military actions in Gaza, prompting discussions on the ongoing conflict in the region. Despite the IDF’s rebuttal of the claims made in “NAZA,” the filmmakers argue that the film exposes a systemic issue rather than isolated incidents, shedding light on the realities faced by civilians in Gaza. Abraham emphasized that the film aims to showcase the continuous challenges and impact of the conflict on the Palestinian population.
