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West Bank documentary maker criticises US policy in Oscars speech

Christal Hayes
BBC News, Los Angeles
Watch: Israeli filmmaker takes dab at current political climate

An Israeli journalist has said US foreign policy "is helping to block" a path towards a political solution in the Middle East as he picked up a best documentary Oscar for No Other Land, a feature set in the occupied West Bank.

The acceptance speech at the 97th Academy Awards was one of the most overtly political moments of the night.

Yuval Abraham said his life was very different to that of his colleague, Palestinian journalist Basel Adra. "When I look at Basel, I see my brother, but we are unequal," Abraham told the audience.

Their win comes amid a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, pausing fighting for an exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners.

As they won their Oscar on Sunday night, Abraham and Adra took to the stage with colleagues Rachel Szor and Hamdan Ballal to pick up the award.

Abraham said: "There is a different path, a political solution, without ethnic supremacy, with national rights for both of our people.

"And I have to say, as I am here, the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path." The audience cheered.

Adra thanked the Academy and said he became a father two months ago.

"I hope to my daughter that she will not have to live the same life I am living now, always fearing settlers' violence, home demolitions and forceful displacements."

He said the film reflected "the harsh reality we have been enduring for decades".

No Other Land had been hotly tipped to win the category.

The film follows the fight over Masafer Yatta, a community of around 20 villages, and the friendship between Adra and Abraham.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Israeli settlements in the territory are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this. They have expanded over the past 55 years, becoming a focal point of violence and conflicting claims over land.

In his speech, Abraham also condemned the "atrocious destruction of Gaza" and called for the "Israeli hostages brutally taken in the crime of October 7" to be freed.

On 7 October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. That triggered an Israeli military campaign that has killed at least 48,365 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Film shows Israel army demolishing West Bank homes