Israeli Film “NAZA” on Gaza Receives 25-Minute Standing Ovation at Venice Film Festival

Venice,
A documentary examining Israel’s use of AI-powered targeting systems against Palestinians in Gaza received a 25-minute standing ovation following its premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The 80-minute film, “NAZA,” is directed by Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. The pair previously won an Oscar in 2025 for “No Other Land,” made together with Palestinian co-directors Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal.
Based on nearly three years of investigation, the documentary features testimonies from anonymous sources within the Israeli military and intelligence community. The witnesses’ voices and faces were digitally altered, and the interviews were filmed at night on rooftops in Tel Aviv. Abraham told AFP the goal was to give soldiers and officers the opportunity to explain in detail how the systems built to kill Palestinians in Gaza actually worked. The film’s title references a term used in Hebrew intelligence that denotes the expected number of civilian casualties in any given airstrike.
Interviewees in the documentary described an AI-assisted system called “Lavender,” which used surveillance data on Gaza’s communications to identify assassination targets. One source compared the process to a factory’s assembly line, while another likened target identification to a “video game.” Sources also discussed the destruction of civilian homes and a broader climate of hostility toward Palestinians, with some saying intelligence officers knew that the homes they were targeting had families living inside them.
Abraham expressed hope that the film would pressure Western governments to withdraw support for Israel and impose sanctions. He argued that continued support undermines those working for human rights and a political solution both within Israel and Palestine. Writing for +972 Magazine, Abraham and Szor concluded that civilian deaths in Gaza were not an incidental consequence of the conflict, but the result of deliberate, calculated decisions.
The film has drawn a strong response from trade press. Screen International called it “immediate and shattering,” while The Hollywood Reporter said it would generate anger and revulsion toward the current Israeli government. It was produced by Jim Wilson in partnership with The Guardian, with Jonathan Glazer serving as executive producer.
“NAZA” is the only documentary in this year’s Venice Film Festival competition lineup. It follows last year’s “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” which received a 23-minute standing ovation and went on to win Venice’s second-highest honor.