An Israeli-made documentary examining the war in Gaza and allegations of systematic civilian killings has won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, after receiving a record-breaking standing ovation at its premiere.
NAZA, directed by Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, was awarded the prize at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival. The film had already attracted major international attention after audiences gave it a reported 25-minute standing ovation, the longest in the festival’s history.
The documentary features testimony from 24 Israeli military intelligence officers and soldiers and examines how Palestinian civilians in Gaza are targeted during Israeli military operations. According to the filmmakers, the interviews reveal systems they argue have enabled large-scale civilian deaths. Israel has denied the allegations made by the film.
The title NAZA refers to a Hebrew military acronym associated with the concept of “collateral damage”. The film was made largely in secrecy, with interviews conducted at night on rooftops in Tel Aviv. Its reporting draws on investigations published by Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine, Local Call and The Guardian.
Receiving the award, Abraham said that in the 10 days since the festival began, “Israel killed six Palestinian children in Gaza at least”.
“The Israeli intelligence officers we spoke with talked to us how this mass killing is systemic: not by accident, but by design, actions of murder and policies that are based on the total dehumanisation of Palestinians,” he told the audience.
NAZA also marks another major success for its directors. Abraham and Szor previously co-directed No Other Land, the documentary about Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary.
The Venice award came as the festival’s other major prizes were announced. The Golden Lion went to Danish director May el-Toukhy’s Woman Unknown, while NAZA took the Special Jury Prize.
The film is likely to generate further debate when it reaches wider audiences, particularly because it presents testimony from Israeli insiders about the conduct of the Gaza war.
For supporters, the documentary represents an important act of investigative filmmaking and a challenge to official narratives. For critics, its allegations and interpretation of military conduct will remain highly contested.
Either way, its reception in Venice demonstrates how strongly Gaza continues to resonate beyond politics and diplomacy — and how filmmakers are increasingly using documentary cinema to examine one of the most divisive conflicts of the modern era.
