'No Other Land' Filmmaker Hamdan Ballal Released After IOF Abduction

Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, has been released after being abducted by Israeli occupation forces (IOF). “Hamdan Ballal is free and is about to go home to his family,” announced Israeli co-director Yuval Abraham on X.

Ballal was reportedly lynched by Israeli settlers in his home village of Susya in the occupied West Bank yesterday, March 24th. The assault left him with head and stomach injuries. Witnesses, including his fellow filmmaker Basel Adra, described how a group of settlers approached Ballal’s home, accompanied by Israeli soldiers who fired shots into the air. Ballal’s wife was also present and saw him being brutally assaulted.

Yuval Ibrahim, the Israeli journalist who worked with Ballal on No Other Land, reported that after the attack, Israeli soldiers raided the ambulance treating Ballal and abducted him, leaving his whereabouts unknown for hours.

The abduction and assault on Ballal came amid escalating violence against Palestinian journalists. Earlier that day, Israeli forces in Gaza killed Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist Hossam Shabat and Palestine Today TV correspondent Mohammed Mansour.

Former UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn condemned the attack, stating, “No Other Land depicts the horrifying violence Palestinians in the West Bank endure under apartheid. Yesterday, its co-director Hamdan Ballal was beaten in his home by settlers before being detained by Israeli forces. People applauded Hamdan. Now they are silent. Free Hamdan.” Meanwhile, Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo urged action, calling on “every filmmaker and academy member” to unite in protest, calling the assault an “attack” on filmmaking.

Ballal’s documentary No Other Land, which he co-directed with Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, and Rachel Szor, won this year's best documentary feature Oscar, highlighting the ongoing displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank.