★★★★★
There’s no two ways about it: NAZA is the most important documentary of our time, and one that should shake you to your very core. At the very least, it should leave you with a pit in your stomach.
For NAZA, Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor (No Other Land) interviewed 24 IDF soldiers on the basis of anonymity as they outlined the systematic operations and logistics behind the murder of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians. The term ‘naza’ refers to the collateral damage involved when bombing a single target, with each ‘naza’ figure representing the amount of civilian lives that will be lost in an attack. The soldiers explain in great detail how these systems work, from calculating the amount of people in one apartment building to tracking the phones of every single Palestinian in order to locate Hamas operatives/targets. We’re shown how there is no distinction made between women, children and adults, and how straightforward it is for the IDF to bomb an entire apartment building just because a target might be there. It goes a lot deeper than this, but a lot of it is far too shocking to even fathom.
This documentary should be essential viewing for everybody as we witness this genocide unfold before our very eyes, and watching it should fill you with anger and rage. We hear how Israeli soldiers enjoyed sniping starving Palestinians who cut the line and ran towards a food distribution centre, for no other reason than that they weren’t standing in line. We also hear interviewees admit that they’re contributing to a genocide, with one even posing the question: “I know the Nazi’s are bad, but what does this make me?” The silence which followed this quote was absolutely deafening.
NAZA, which was filmed at night on the rooftops of Tel Aviv, is a harrowing but necessary documentary which has caused uproar and controversy across the world, which is bizarre in itself as all it’s doing is laying the truth behind Israel’s war crimes bare, as told by those carrying it out. Abraham and Szor are so incredibly brave for putting their lives on the line again. There is no soundtrack or score present, nor is there any narration. The prolonged moments of silence force you to sit with the horrors you just heard. NAZA’s focus lies on the silhouetted IDF soldiers, set against the backdrop of Tel Aviv by night and its residents living their lives. The contrast between stories of genocide and footage of Israelis watching TV and doing yoga only goes to emphasise the horror even more. A documentary has never been this important.
