No Other Land

Regardless of how one views the ongoing volatility between Israelis and Hamas in Gaza, there’s another little-known yet equally explosive crisis in the region that has been going on for far longer. This nearly 30-year-old conflict has been quietly but unsettlingly unfolding on the Palestinian Occupied West Bank involving parties not tied to the better-known current conflict, a confrontation that has not received nearly the same level of attention – that is, until the release of this troubling film. Shot over the course of four years, the writing-directorial team of Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Basel Adra have compiled this shocking documentary about the atrocities that have been relentlessly and mercilessly inflicted upon West Bank Palestinians in the Masafer Yatta region. This collection of approximately 20 small villages was summarily seized by the Israeli government (with the blessing of its courts after a 22-year litigation battle) to develop it as a training ground for tank regiments, an undertaking that has involved the demolition of existing structures and the displacement of the area’s residents, some of whose families had occupied their land for nearly 200 years. Many of those who resisted were forcibly removed, imprisoned or subjected to the heartless, uncompromising wrath of Israeli troops, responses involving bald-faced hatred, severe injury and even death. To make matters worse, the displaced have often had nowhere to go in the wake of these actions, some being forced to live in caves in the adjacent mountains. To be sure, locals have consistently fought back, and some have even attempted to defiantly rebuild the homes and schools they have lost, only to have their hopes dashed by subsequent rounds of sanctioned destruction. It should be noted, as indicated above, that these actions predate the Hamas attacks, so not even retribution can be used as a convenient or “justifiable” excuse for these actions. In light of that, then, can those who profess to be humanitarians realistically call themselves by that name in the wake of an immoral tragedy like this, no matter how much its execution may have been declared legally permissible? Indeed, where is the compassion, the fairness, the justice? This on-the-ground account of events unflinchingly documents this horrific situation, an inexcusable exercise in overreach between the two factions, one that’s impossible to rationalize in the face of vastly uneven odds and especially when the real, previously undisclosed basis behind this land grab is disgracefully revealed. This scathing chronicle, primarily filmed by Palestinian activist Adra and Israeli investigative journalist Abraham, shows the degree of atrocity that has been unleashed in the area, as well as what’s conceivably possible when individuals from two opposing backgrounds begin working cooperatively to expose what’s happening and to concertedly look for a workable solution to stop this inhumane, indefensible madness. “No Other Land” is not an easy watch by any means (sensitive viewers take note), particularly in light of its graphic depictions of violence (some of which, in all honesty, become somewhat repetitive after a while, what some might arguably characterize as overkill). Nevertheless, this Oscar nominee for best documentary feature shines a very bright light on this wholly unacceptable act of barbarity, one that any supposedly civilized society should be completely ashamed of, especially now that the whole world is watching.

A heartwarming portrait in hell. I feel as though this is a cool war movie with likeable characters constructing sweet shelters and surviving in horrible conditions. The unfortunate reality is overwhelming.