‘No Other Land’ Co-Director Says U.S. Academy ‘Refused’ to Issue Statement in Support of Hamdan Ballal: They Were ‘Silent When a Filmmaker They Honored Needed Them the Most’

Yuval Abraham, one of the filmmakers behind the Oscar-winning documentary “No Other Land,” has criticized the Academy for not commenting on the attack of his Palestinian co-director Hamdan Ballal.

via: THR

Abraham, one of four directors of the documentary — which won an Oscar earlier this month — had taken to Twitter earlier this week to say that Ballal was arrested Monday night after being assaulted by a group of settlers in Ballal’s home village of Susiya. An eyewitness to the detainment told The Hollywood Reporter that there was “a pool of blood” outside Ballal’s front door and two other Palestinians, Khaled Mohammad Shanran and Nasser Shreteh, were also taken.

On Tuesday, Abraham posted an update to say that Ballal had been released following an interrogation by the Israeli police.

The creative is now speaking up again to express anger that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organization that oversees the Oscars, “refused” to publish a statement on the incident. “Sadly, the U.S. Academy, which awarded us an Oscar three weeks ago, declined to publicly support Hamdan Ballal while he was beaten and tortured by Israeli soldiers and settlers,” Abraham wrote.

On Tuesday, Abraham posted an update to say that Ballal had been released following an interrogation by the Israeli police.

The creative is now speaking up again to express anger that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organization that oversees the Oscars, “refused” to publish a statement on the incident. “Sadly, the U.S. Academy, which awarded us an Oscar three weeks ago, declined to publicly support Hamdan Ballal while he was beaten and tortured by Israeli soldiers and settlers,” Abraham wrote.

“The European Academy voiced support, as did countless other award groups and festivals. Several U.S. Academy members — especially in the documentary branch — pushed for a statement, but it was ultimately refused. We were told that because other Palestinians were beaten up in the settler attack, it could be considered unrelated to the film, so they felt no need to respond.”

Abraham continued: “In other words, while Hamdan was clearly targeted for making No Other Land (he recalled soldiers joking about the Oscar as they tortured him), he was also targeted for being Palestinian — like countless others every day who are disregarded. This, it seems, gave the Academy an excuse to remain silent when a filmmaker they honored, living under Israeli occupation, needed them the most. It’s not too late to change this stance. Even now, issuing a statement condemning the attack on Hamdan and the Masafer Yatta community would send a meaningful message and serve as a deterrent for the future.”

The Academy did not immediately respond to THR‘s request for comment. The organization has a longstanding policy of not commenting on matters outside of its immediate purview.

The IDF had offered a different version of events surrounding the incident in its own statement on Monday, saying the violence started after “several terrorists hurled rocks at Israeli citizens, damaging their vehicles.” Both sides began throwing rocks at one another, and as IDF and Israeli police arrived at the conflict, “several terrorists began hurling rocks at the security forces.” Both parties agreed that three Palestinians were detained.

No Other Land, directed by four filmmakers — two Israeli, two Palestinian — took home the prize for best documentary at the 97th annual Academy Awards on March 2.