The Israeli Minister of Culture, Miki Zohar, announced his intention to move to revoke the Israeli citizenship of directors Yuval Abraham and Rahel Zohar, the makers of the documentary film "Naza," on charges of "treason," following the film winning the special jury prize at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival.
Zohar stated, in a statement reported by the news agency, that he would immediately work to revoke the citizenship of the two directors, describing them as "traitors," considering the film's victory at the Italian festival shocking.
The Israeli minister added that the directors are harming their country in pursuit of acclaim abroad, as he expressed.
This stance comes in the wake of the success of "Naza," a documentary directed by the Israelis Yuval Abraham and Rahel Zohar, and produced by director Jonathan Glazer.
The work is based on journalistic investigations published by the Israeli magazine "+972," the website "Local Incident," and the British newspaper "The Guardian" between 2023 and 2025.
The film features testimonies from 24 soldiers and officers in the Israeli army and intelligence agencies, documenting what its creators describe as the mechanisms for targeting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip through a system relying on surveillance, artificial intelligence, and remote bombing, shedding light on the procedures for selecting targets and estimating the accompanying human casualties of the airstrikes.
"Proud of the award"
Since its world premiere in the official competition at the Venice Film Festival, "Naza" has sparked widespread controversy within Israel due to the narrative it presents about the war on the Gaza Strip.
It also garnered significant attention at the festival, with reports stating that the audience applauded its creators for nearly 25 consecutive minutes following the screening.
In response to the growing criticisms, director Yuval Abraham said in a video he posted on Sunday that the team is proud of the award.
He emphasized that the real importance of the film lies in the testimonies of the soldiers and officers involved, adding that the speakers in the film chose to give their testimonies in Hebrew to reach the Israeli audience and encourage it to listen to what happened in Gaza.
Abraham affirmed that the film aims to spark a discussion within Israeli society regarding war practices in the sector, inviting his critics to watch the work before passing judgment on it, and pledging to work on showing it as widely as possible within Israel.
"Naza" is the latest work of Abraham and Zohar, who gained international recognition after their participation in directing the documentary film "No Other Land," which won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature in 2025.