“A film like this had to be made because too often the news reminds us of facts we forget and sometimes shows us a world that has been denied the power to speak.”
Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania’s latest film, The Voice of Hind Rajab, premiered at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on Wednesday to a standing ovation.
The screening received a rapturous response from the audience, including a standing ovation lasting more than 22 minutes, the Anadolu news agency reported, as well as chants of “free Palestine.”
There was a 23-minute standing ovation along with chants of ‘Free Palestine’ at the Venice Film Festival premiere of The Voice of Hind Rajab, a film recounting the harrowing final moments of a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/XyLSKXRgLR
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) September 4, 2025
Executive producers Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara were on their feet to congratulate the filmmakers and cast, who held up a picture of Hind during the ovation.
The film recounts the events of January 29, 2024, when the six-year-old was the sole survivor in a car hit by Israeli forces while trying to escape with her family in Gaza.
During the attack, Hind made a desperate phone call to Red Crescent volunteers pleading for help. Volunteers tried to maintain contact and summon an ambulance, but both the vehicle and the girl were struck before help could arrive.
‘Had to be Made’
Speaking after the screening, Ben Hania said: “A film like this had to be made because too often the news reminds us of facts we forget and sometimes shows us a world that has been denied the power to speak.”
She said Hind’s voice “is ultimately that of Gaza asking for help.”
“When I heard for the first time the voice of Hind Rajab it was a feeling of helplessness and anger…”
Kaouther Ben Hania, the director of ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’. pic.twitter.com/oUs3RRH9FI
— Saul Staniforth (@SaulStaniforth) September 4, 2025
The film aims to bring Hind’s voice and the suffering of Gaza to the big screen, reminding audiences of a tragedy.
‘Anchored in Truth’
“Isn’t it enough? Enough of the mass killing, the starvation, the dehumanization, the destruction, and the ongoing occupation,” actress Saja Kilani reportedly said at a press conference. “This film is not an opinion or a fantasy. It is anchored in truth. Hind’s story carries the weight of an entire people.”
Actor Saja Kilani, speaking for the team behind ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab,’ asked: “Isn’t it enough?” at the Venice Film Festival.
“Isn’t it enough? Enough of the mass killing, the starvation, the dehumanisation, the destruction, the ongoing occupation?”
The film, capturing the… pic.twitter.com/883DD8JyC9
— TRT World (@trtworld) September 4, 2025
Kilani continued, “Her voice is one amongst 10s of 1000s of children that were killed in Gaza in the last two years alone. It is the voice of every daughter and every son with the right to live, to dream, to exist in dignity. Yet all of it was stolen in front of our unblinking eyes.”
The film, which is competing for the Golden Lion, the grand prize of the Venice festival, one of the most prestigious awards in world cinema, moved audiences and critics alike during its premiere, drawing widespread emotional reactions.
Tunisia has reportedly selected the film as its submission for an Oscar for the Best International Feature.
ICC Case Filed
In May, the Hind Rajab Foundation announced it has formally filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, accusing an Israeli military official of committing a war crime in the killing of Hind Rajab and her family.
In a statement, the foundation named Lieutenant Colonel Benny Aharon—commander of the Israeli occupation army’s 401st Armored Brigade—as the officer directly responsible for the military operation that targeted Hind’s family car.
Killer of Hind Rajab Identified: ICC Complaint Filed against Israeli Officer
The foundation said the complaint follows a year-long investigation, during which its team identified the soldiers, officers, and field commanders involved in the attack, all of whom were under Aharon’s command.
The statement noted that Aharon’s tank unit not only shelled the family’s car, but later bombed a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance dispatched to rescue Hind, killing two paramedics.
‘Undeniable’ – Probe Confirms Israeli Army Presence when Hind Rajab was Killed in Gaza
Hind’s body was found ten days later, lying next to her cousin Lian, amid the wreckage and debris.
“This is not an act of revenge, but a legal and moral duty toward a child who was killed while pleading for help,” said Diab Abu Jahjah, head of the Hind Rajab Foundation.
(Anadolu, PC)
In over 80 yrs of life, I have never been so ashamed of my country — not in what the US did in Korea/Vietnam/Iraq/Libya/Syria — but what it has been doing v. Palestinians who R undefended, a people rousted from their homes and land and that is contiinuing. Shame on all of us who do not act/speak out/do something to end the crooked/criminal regime in Washington and Western Europe.