Hamdan Ballal, Oscar-winning Palestinian filmmaker, reportedly beaten and detained
Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal holds his Oscar for Best Documentary Feature for "No Other Land" (Photo: Getty Images)
A co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary "No Other Land" was reportedly beaten by settlers and detained by Israeli forces during clashes in the West Bank, according to NBC News.
Yuval Abraham, co-director of "No Other Land", stated that his colleague Hamdan Ballal was assaulted by a group of Israeli settlers in the Palestinian village of Susiya, located in the Masafer Yatta region. According to Abraham, Ballal sustained head and abdominal injuries, managed to call an ambulance, but was taken by Israeli soldiers before he could receive medical care.
"Soldiers pulled him out of the ambulance," Abraham wrote on X, adding that all contact with Ballal was lost afterward. As of Monday evening, his whereabouts remained unknown. Activists say the filmmaker is now considered missing.
Israeli response and escalating violence in the region
A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces denied that anyone was taken from an ambulance, stating that forces responded to "violent clashes" triggered after Palestinians allegedly threw stones at Israeli civilians and damaged vehicles. "Three Palestinians suspected of attacking security forces and one Israeli citizen involved in the violence were arrested," the statement said.
Masafer Yatta, a disputed area long targeted by demolition orders, is featured in "No Other Land," which documents life under Israeli occupation. Violence against Palestinians by Israeli settlers and forces has soared since the start of the war in Gaza.
The situation remains tense, and the fate of Hamdan Ballal is still unknown.
