Hamdan Bilal was accused of throwing rocks at soldiers, but his co-director has claimed he was attacked by settlers
March 25, 2025 10:46
ByJC Reporter, Jewish News Syndicate
The director of an Oscar-winning documentary about the Israel-Palestine conflict has been arrested during violent clashes in the West Bank.
Hamdan Bilal co-directed No Other Land, which was produced by a collection of both Israeli and Palestinian film-makers and chronicled a budding friendship between a Palestinian activist and Israeli journalist in Masafer Yatta.
The film attracted significant criticism from both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Israeli Culture Minister Miki Zohar and a major BDS group among those to condemn it.
Weeks after his win at the Oscars, the IDF announced that Bilal was arrested after violence broke out between Palestinians and Israelis in the village featured in the documentary, Masafer Yatta.
The military stated that Bilal was arrested on suspicion of throwing stones at security forces but the details of the incident remain unclear. The IDF’s statement referred to a “violent confrontation...involving mutual rock-throwing between Palestinians and Israelis”.
Bilal’s co-director, Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, posted on X claiming that Bilal had been attacked at his home by a group of settlers and had been beaten, before being arrested in an ambulance as he was treated.
Abraham wrote: “Since then he has disappeared, and it is unclear whether he is receiving medical treatment or what his condition is.”
He alleged that the violence was part of “a long-standing campaign to expel the residents of Masafer Yatta to make way for settlements”, which he claimed was “backed by the army”.
A spokesperson for the IDF denied Abraham’s claim that Bilal was detained in an ambulance and confirmed soldiers had made four arrests – three Palestinians and one Israeli.
They said: “Several assailants threw stones at Israeli civilians, damaging their vehicles near Sussiya... A violent confrontation then broke out at the scene, involving mutual rock-throwing between Palestinians and Israelis.
“Upon the arrival of IDF and police forces to disperse the confrontation, a number of assailants began throwing stones at security personnel.
"In response, the forces arrested three Palestinians suspected of hurling stones at the security forces, as well as one Israeli civilian involved in the altercation. The detainees were taken for further questioning by Israeli police.”
The IDF later announced that the Palestinian trio had been released on bail and taken to a local hospital for treatment.