Israeli forces have arrested Hamdan Ballal, the Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, in the occupied West Bank, following an assault by Israeli settlers. This was confirmed by Yuval Abraham, another director of the documentary, in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
No Other Land, which won the Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards earlier this year, was created by four Palestinian and Israeli activists, including Hamdan Ballal. The film focuses on the ongoing events in Gaza.
Yuval Abraham reported that Ballal was attacked by a group of Israeli settlers, who inflicted injuries to his head and stomach, causing significant bleeding. Abraham stated, “Our co-director of No Other Land, Hamdan Ballal, was beaten by settlers and injured. He suffered head and stomach injuries, and he was bleeding.”
He further explained that after the attack, Ballal called for an ambulance, but before help arrived, Israeli soldiers detained him. “He was arrested by Israeli forces and has not been seen since,” Abraham said.
In addition, the non-violent Jewish organization Center for Jewish Non-Violence released a video showing masked settlers approaching two of their members in a dusty field at night. The activists fled to their car, with one of them shouting, “Get in the car, get out!” As they drove off, stones were thrown, and the car’s window was shattered. The driver remarked, “The window is broken,” as the car moved away.
At the same time, a group of 10 to 12 masked settlers attacked the activists with stones and sticks, breaking the car’s windows and slashing its tires.
Josh Kimmelman, a human rights activist present at the scene, said, “Hamdán Ballal was blindfolded and taken away. We don’t know where he is now.”
The Israeli military has stated that it is investigating the incident, but no immediate comments have been made regarding the situation.
