No Other Land: Oscar-nominated West Bank feature director says films 'can be part of change'

In a village in the West Bank at night, a Palestinian and an Israeli sat side-by-side in deep conversation, their words filled with anticipation and concern for the future. They couldn't help but wonder, when will Basel be free to visit Yuval's home in Israel? When will Basel's village obtain building permits? And when will they finally have a truly stable life?

For years, the two friends have been documenting scenes of Israeli forces destroying homes, wells, and schools, acts of destruction stemming from court declarations that Basel's community is illegal. They encourage each other, hoping to change this cruel reality. Now, their story has been brought to the international stage, attracting widespread attention.

The documentary they participated in filming, "No Other Land," received nominations for the Academy Award and the British Academy Film Award for Best Documentary. The film tells the story of the struggle surrounding the Masafer Yatta area (comprising about 20 villages), and the friendship between Basel Adra and Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham.

In the film, Basel narrowly escapes detention after a protest, his father is arrested, and a soldier shoots a community member in the neck while confiscating a generator, leading to paralysis and eventual death. Yuval said in an interview with the BBC: "The success of the film and the attention it's receiving is gratifying, but I don't think those who have the power to change the situation are taking enough action." He added: "I don't think films can change the world, but I believe they can change individuals and can be part of a larger transformation, which we desperately need now."

Basel and Yuval, in collaboration with Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor, spent five years completing the film. Regarding the paralyzed man in the film, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that its investigation found no criminal wrongdoing. A spokesperson said that during an operation against "illegal construction," two Palestinians grabbed soldiers' weapons and bulletproof vests, leading to the shooting. Palestinian witnesses told Israeli media that they were not included in the initial investigation and believed the shooting was intentional.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. According to international law, Israeli settlements in the area are considered illegal, but Israel disputes this. Over the past 55 years, these settlements have continued to expand, becoming the focus of violent conflicts and land ownership disputes.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. This triggered Israeli military operations, which, according to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, have resulted in at least 47,500 deaths in Gaza. Since then, settler-related violence has increased in the West Bank, with 13 Palestinians killed by settlers, according to the United Nations. The Palestinian Ministry of Health stated that during the same period, more than 850 Palestinians (many of whom were militants) were killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank. The United Nations stated that 30 Israelis were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank during this period.

In 2024, the United Nations recorded approximately 1,420 incidents of violence by Israeli settlers, the highest number of incidents resulting in casualties, property damage, or both since records began in 2006. Basel said that attacks on Palestinians have increased since the return of former U.S. President Donald Trump to politics, and filmmakers fear the situation may worsen. Trump lifted sanctions imposed by the Biden administration on some settlers. Trump's ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said that Israel has a "deed of ownership" to the West Bank and that there is "no such thing" as occupation or settlements. When asked if he agreed that the United States should recognize Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank, Trump said that he had not taken a position, but that he would announce it in four weeks.

The dispute over Masafer Yatta began in the 1980s when Israel declared the area a closed military firing zone, meaning that no one was allowed to live there. According to records from a 1981 meeting, then-Israeli Agriculture Minister Ariel Sharon provided the military with additional training areas to limit "the expansion of Arab villagers from the mountains to the desert." Israel argued that residents had not previously resided there permanently. Palestinian residents filed a lawsuit with the Israeli Supreme Court, arguing that the community had lived there for generations and presented a 1945 map showing some villages.

In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Israel, allowing the demolition of homes and the expulsion of more than 1,000 villagers. Scenes in the film show bulldozers destroying an elementary school, trucks dumping mud into a well, and mechanical equipment destroying a house, with villagers confronting the army. A girl is crying, and when her mother is asked if there is anywhere else to go, she says: "We have no other land." The documentary also records intimate human moments, such as the mother who moved into a cave kissing her daughter and telling her: "You are my love... tomorrow will be a new day."

The film also explores the friendship between Basel and Yuval. Although they are of similar age and share similar values, the inequality between them is ever-present. Yuval can travel freely in Israel and the West Bank, while Basel must obtain a permit to enter Israel, which Israel calls a security measure. In the film, Basel laments that although he studied law, he can only find construction work in Israel, and when he thinks about it too much, "I feel immense frustration."

The film does not shy away from the tensions caused by Yuval's identity. A Palestinian asks him: "When you come here, your brothers or friends might destroy my house, how can we still maintain a friendship?" Yuval told the BBC that he felt "responsible for what is happening to Basel's community" because "at the end of the day, the fuel in the bulldozers is my tax money."

Last year, Yuval sparked strong opposition when he criticized the "apartheid situation" and called for a ceasefire in Gaza while accepting the Best Documentary Award with Basel at the Berlin Film Festival. American filmmaker Ben Russell, who was present at the time, wore a Palestinian keffiyeh scarf, expressing his opposition to the "genocide" in Gaza. Israel strongly denies the allegations of genocide. German Culture Minister Claudia Roth said that the remarks were "shockingly one-sided and filled with deep hatred of Israel," while Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner posted on social media that it was an "intolerable relativization" and that "anti-Semitism has no place in Berlin." Israeli public broadcaster Kan labeled Yuval's remarks as anti-Semitic.

Yuval said that he had received death threats and told the BBC that he was "very angry" about the label because "at a time of rising anti-Semitism on the right and left, the word is being emptied of meaning." He said that hearing such criticism was "absurd" because most of his family was killed in the Holocaust, adding that learning from that history "should tell us to fight against dehumanization... no matter who the victims are."

Despite winning several international awards, "No Other Land" is self-distributed in the United States because it has not found an official distributor - a rarity for an Oscar-nominated documentary. One of the last scenes in the film is from October 13, 2023, when Basel recorded a settler shooting his cousin, who had his hands empty. In other footage, settlers throw stones at houses while soldiers watch. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that the shooting incident has been transferred to the state prosecutor's office, and the BBC has contacted the office for comment.

Basel, who is currently in Masafer Yatta, said that settlers have "unlimited power" and that there is "daily harassment." He said that there were three major settler attacks in January, including a 72-year-old man who was hospitalized after being hit in the head with a stick, and about 15 people who were arrested for herding sheep or driving away settlers' sheep in the two days before January 30. Israeli police did not respond to the BBC's request for comment.

The UK has sanctioned three settler outposts and four organizations it believes support violence against communities in the West Bank. Yuval called on the UK to sanction all settlers, believing it would "really act as a deterrent." A UK Foreign Office spokesperson told the BBC that the Foreign Secretary "has made it clear to Israeli ministers that they must crack down on settler violence and end settlement expansion." The statement said: "We regularly take action to tackle settler violence, including through targeted sanctions, and will continue to do everything we can to ensure that the rights of Palestinians are protected and that those responsible for violence are held accountable."

Yuval said: "I truly believe that there is no other way out than to reach a just and fair political solution, allowing Palestinians to achieve freedom, real freedom, and for our people, both of them, to have security and self-determination." He added: "What really angers me is that not only is my government moving in the opposite direction, but the world is allowing this to happen for so long."

In the film, Basel recalls Tony Blair's seven-minute visit to his village - after which Israel cancelled the demolition order there. "It's a story about power," he said. Now, Basel draws "strength and power from the people around" him, which makes him not want to give up. "A drop of water cannot change," he says during a protest in the film, "but constant dripping will bring change."