Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the country’s attorney general and the head of the Shin Bet security service to reveal the identities of soldiers and officers interviewed in the investigative documentary NAZA and prosecute them for causing “harm to Israel’s diplomatic and security interests.” The award-winning documentary, directed by Oscar-winning filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor and produced by The Guardian, details Israel’s mass killing of civilians in Gaza. The film is in cinemas, including in the UK and the US, and will be screened in over 50 countries. In a letter addressed to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, and Shin Bet Chief David Zini, the Israeli Prime Minister demanded that they “act urgently to uncover the identity of all those who are involved or appear in the defamation film.” Netanyahu also called for “the opening of a criminal investigation and prosecution for serious crimes against information security, criminal defamation and harm to Israel’s diplomatic and security interests.” NAZA premiered last month at the Venice International Film Festival, where it won the special jury prize after receiving the longest standing ovation in the event’s history. It takes its name from an acronym used euphemistically by Israeli intelligence to indicate how many civilians it expects to be killed in an airstrike. NAZA directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor won the special jury prize at the Venice film festival last month. Photograph: Capital Pictures/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Live News. The Israeli government has fiercely attacked Abraham and Szor, threatening to strip them of their citizenship and accusing them of treason. Government supporters have vowed to harass the filmmakers upon their return to Israel and protested at Szor’s parents’ home in Savyon, shouting: “Death sentence to traitors.” Zamir denounced the film as an “attack on the State of Israel”, accusing it of spreading “lies and blood libels”. He had earlier ordered military and legal officials to identify the soldiers featured and examine possible legal action against them. However, military prosecutor general Itai Ofir said criminal prosecution would require evidence of security breaches or disclosure of classified material, although disciplinary measures remained possible. The protection of journalistic sources is a cornerstone of press freedom under international human rights standards and disclosure orders are only permitted under strict conditions. Ricardo Gutiérrez, secretary general of the European Federation of Journalists, which represents more than 320,000 journalists, said: “These threats constitute a blatant act of intimidation against “I am not surprised by this outburst, which confirms that this regime is willing to do anything to cover up its crimes against humanity and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.” A Guardian spokesperson said: “After first threatening to strip NAZA directors of their Israeli citizenship, the Israeli government is now calling for an investigation into his journalistic sources. All of these moves are attempts to distract from the pressing questions the film raises about mass. murders of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Journalists must be free to conduct investigations in the public interest without threats or harassment.” Graffiti depicting Abraham and Szor, and the word ‘traitors’ in Hebrew, appeared on a wall in Ashdod, southern Israel, after NAZA received the special jury prize at the Venice film festival. Photograph: Amir Cohen/ReutersNAZA is based on revelations first published by the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine, the outlet in Hebrew Local Call and The Guardian between 2023 and 2025. Earlier this month, a spokesperson for The Guardian said that “the process of assessing the credibility of the testimonies was rigorous. It included leaked classified documents, detailed verification of specific attacks, and corroboration through a broader group of confidential journalistic sources who did not appear on camera in the film.” Over the past three years, the team behind the film has “interviewed more than 100 sources familiar with the IDF systems used in the war in Gaza, including senior commanders directly involved in authorizing the attacks,” the Guardian spokesperson added. In recent days, the Israeli government has promoted an online film project that imitates the style of NAZA, in an attempt to question the findings of the real film. Ariel Averbuch, an Israeli lawyer and army reservist who made NAZA: The Real Story, described it as an “offensive measure” aimed at diverting the world’s attention from accusations about the killing of civilians by the Israeli army. Film industry heavyweights around the world, including the directors of the Locarno film festival, have expressed their solidarity with Abraham and Szor, saying. that they “strongly supported the rights of filmmakers to address difficult and urgent topics without fear of reprisal.”
