They Kept Beating Him for 20 Minutes: Israeli Forces Release Palestinian Filmmaker After Violent Settler Attack
Occupied West Bank (Quds News Network)- Israeli forces released Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal on Tuesday after kidnapping him following a brutal attack by Israeli settlers in Susiya, a village in the occupied West Bank. Ballal, one of the co-directors of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, suffered serious injuries before being detained by Israeli soldiers.
According to Ballal, the settlers beat him for about 20 minutes, leaving him bleeding heavily. Despite his severe condition, Israeli soldiers stormed an ambulance treating him and arrested him along with another Palestinian.
Filmmaker Basel Adra, who worked alongside Ballal on the documentary, shared a photo on social media showing Ballal in a hospital with bloodstained clothes. Adra said Israeli settlers and soldiers beat Ballal, left him blindfolded and handcuffed, and later arrested him.
Human rights groups and eyewitnesses reported that an armed mob of Israeli settlers stormed Susiya on Monday. They vandalized Palestinian property before violently assaulting Ballal. According to the Center for Jewish Nonviolence, settlers struck Ballal in the head, causing heavy bleeding.
Adra, who witnessed the attack, said masked settlers carrying guns and stones attacked Palestinian residents while Israeli soldiers aimed their weapons at the villagers. “We returned from the Oscars, and every day since, we have faced attacks,” he told the Associated Press. He believes the violence is a form of punishment for making the film.
The Israeli military stated that it had detained three Palestinians for allegedly throwing stones during a “violent confrontation” between Israelis and Palestinians. However, eyewitnesses denied this claim and accused soldiers of siding with the settlers.
No Other Land, which won the 2025 Academy Award for Best Documentary, highlights the struggle of native Palestinians in Masafer Yatta against forced displacement.
The documentary has received international acclaim but also sparked Israeli outrage. A theater in Miami Beach even faced threats over screening the film.
Israeli violence in the West Bank has escalated since the genocide in Gaza began. Israeli forces have killed hundreds of Palestinians in military raids, and settler attacks have increased.
Masafer Yatta, where No Other Land was filmed, remains a flashpoint. Israel designated it a military training zone in the 1980s, ordering the expulsion of its native Palestinian residents. Though many remain, they face frequent demolitions and violence.
