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Cuffed and Blindfolded All Night | Palestinian 'No Other Land' Director Remains in Israeli Custody After Attacks by Settlers, IDF Soldiers
In a testimony to his attorney, Hamdan Ballal recounted documenting a settler riot, during which a settler assaulted him while IDF soldiers stood by. He and two other Palestinians were left outside, cuffed and blindfolded, in freezing temperatures overnight after being arrested by IDF soldiers. They have since been handed over to the Israel Police
Palestinian activist and Oscar-winning filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, along with two other Palestinians from southern Hebron in the West Bank, has remained in Israeli custody since Monday.
According to their testimony, Israeli settlers attacked them while IDF soldiers stood by without intervening. Ballal also claimed that he was beaten by soldiers while blindfolded and handcuffed. The three detainees were left outside overnight, bound and blindfolded, on the ground at an IDF base.
The three men – Ballal, 36, Khaled Shanran, 33, and Nasser Shariteh, 50 – were arrested Monday after an incident in which dozens of Israeli settlers, some masked, attacked residents of the Palestinian village of Susiya in southern Hebron.
Palestinian activist and Oscar-winning filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, along with two other Palestinians from southern Hebron in the West Bank, has remained in Israeli custody since Monday.
According to their testimony, Israeli settlersattacked them while IDF soldiers stood by without intervening. Ballal also claimed that he was beaten by soldiers while blindfolded and handcuffed. The three detainees were left outside overnight, bound and blindfolded, on the ground at an IDF base.
The three men – Ballal, 36, Khaled Shanran, 33, and Nasser Shariteh, 50 – were arrested Monday after an incident in which dozens of Israeli settlers, some masked, attacked residents of the Palestinian village of Susiya in southern Hebron.
Ballal is a co-director of the Palestinian film No Other Land. The 2024 Israeli-Palestinian production, which documents life in the West Bank's Masafer Yatta region under the abuse of Israeli authorities and settlers, won the Oscar for Best Documentary.
According to Palestinian residents and international activists on-site, the settlers approached the village to graze their livestock. When the Palestinians called them out, dozens of settlers armed with stones stormed the village, throwing stones, damaging vehicles and water tanks, and stealing security cameras.
According to the IDF, the Palestinians also responded by throwing stones. A local Israeli security squad, made up of settlers from the area, arrived at the scene, detained the Palestinians, and handed them over to the police. One settler was also arrested during the incident.
Only on Tuesday morning was attorney Lea Tsemelfinally able to speak with the detainees. Ballal recounted that he was documenting the attack when he rushed home to protect his family. Shortly after, a well-known settler arrived with two IDF soldiers. The settler punched him in the face, causing him to fall, then kicked him. Israeli soldiers arrested Ballal soon after and took him to an IDF doctor who, according to Ballal, failed to document his injuries and provided only minimal treatment.
Ballal said that after his arrest, he remained handcuffed and blindfolded on the ground while two soldiers guarded him. He alleged that the soldiers beat him, and one fired two warning shots in the air to intimidate him. Shanran and Shariteh also testified that the same settler attacked them at home, accompanied by around 15 masked Israeli youths, while soldiers nearby did nothing to intervene.
All three detainees stated that they were left outside, bound and blindfolded, throughout the freezing temperatures at night.
On Tuesday morning, they were handed over to the Israel Police, but it remains unclear whether they will be released or kept in custody.
The IDF said late Monday night that "several terrorists threw stones at Israeli civilians, damaging vehicles near Susiya ... A violent confrontation ensued, with both Palestinians and Israelis throwing stones. When IDF and police forces arrived to disperse the clash, several terrorists began throwing stones at security forces. In response, troops arrested three Palestinians suspected of throwing stones and an Israeli civilian involved in the altercation. The detainees were transferred to the Israel Police for further investigation. An Israeli civilian injured in the incident was taken for medical treatment."
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