Israeli film on AI-backed Gaza killings gets 25-minute Venice ovation
Por Agence France-Presse — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Israel-Gaza war World Middle East Israeli film on AI-backed Gaza killings gets 25-minute Venice ovation
Oscar-winning directors premiere ‘NAZA’, featuring military whistle-blowers detailing automated target selection
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Agence France-Presse Published: 10:42am, 11 Sep 2026 Updated: 10:56am, 11 Sep 2026
A chilling new documentary about Israel’s AI-powered mass killing of civilians in Gaza from two Oscar-winning Israeli filmmakers received a 25-minute ovation at its premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Thursday.
The audience clapped continuously for Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor after the screening, setting what is thought to be a record in Venice after a 23-minute ovation for another film about Gaza last year.
In their film NAZA, Abraham and Szor used conversations with 24 different Israeli military or intelligence whistle-blowers who spoke on condition that their identities be protected.
“We are letting the soldiers and the officers speak about what they did,” Abraham told Agence France-Presse.
“The goal was very simple: we wanted to hear in as much detail as possible, how the systems of killing in Gaza looked like, how they operated.”
The 80-minute film left many audience members stunned, with interviewees describing how they felt like they worked in a killing “factory” or a lethal video game.
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