A new documentary called NAZA has soldiers and intelligence workers describing airstrikes that killed tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The film, directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, features 24 unnamed interviewees whose faces and voices were changed by computer to hide who they are.
The title comes from the Hebrew phrase nezek agavi, meaning “collateral damage.” The interviews were shot at night from rooftops in Tel Aviv.
Oct. 7, 2023: The Attacks Begin
On Oct. 7, 2023, around 1,200 people were killed in Israel and 250 hostages were taken in attacks led by Hamas. Since then, the death toll in Gaza has risen past 73,000, according to the film. The film also cites a figure of 500 NAZA, or collateral damage, approved for one high-value target — the population of a small Israeli town.
One soldier described a tracking system called “Where’s Daddy?” that uses children’s words to check if their father is home. The same soldier said, “You hack her phone and then you kill her,” in reference to using the method on a 12-year-old girl.
Another subject answered “Yes. Completely” without hesitation when asked if Israel is committing genocide.
The Threat Against the Filmmakers
Abraham and Szor have faced strong words in Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to take away their citizenship. The film was made with help from The Guardian, which also published some of Abraham’s earlier reporting on the subject.
What the Film Shows
The film runs 77 minutes. It includes old film from the early days of Israeli intelligence and the building of Tel Aviv in the 1920s. Abraham wrote many of the earlier stories himself and gives credit to Palestinian reporters who first brought these revelations to light.
The Reporting So Far
The reporting behind NAZA has already appeared in outlets including:
- +972 Magazine
- Local Call
- The Guardian
Abraham wrote many of those stories himself and credits Palestinian reporters who brought the revelations to light.
The Death Toll Continues to Rise
The film states that the death toll continues to rise.
A Principle Worth Defending
The filmmakers face the threat of losing their citizenship. This is a test of conscience against state power, and the film makes that test plain.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Oct. 7, 2023 | Attacks begin; 1,200 killed in Israel, 250 hostages |
| Since Oct. 7, 2023 | More than 73,000 killed in Gaza |
| Present | Filmmakers threatened with loss of citizenship |
The film is a hard watch, and it is meant to be. It offers evidence, presented by people willing to risk everything to tell the truth.
Where the paper stands
The paper backs the citizens and local groups pushing back against mass tracking and the vendors lobbying to keep it, and is against camera networks and data dragnets that could be used for mass tracking, even as it recognizes that the film’s technique of hiding interviewees’ identities through altered faces and voices raises questions about surveillance and privacy.
NAZA’s use of altered faces and voices to protect its interviewees is a reasonable response to a dangerous situation, and the paper supports the filmmakers’ choice to protect their sources rather than expose them to retaliation.
The paper wants more scrutiny of the figures cited in the film — the 73,000 killed in Gaza, the 500 NAZA approved for one target — and urges readers to keep an eye on the reporting that has already appeared in outlets like +972 Magazine, Local Call and The Guardian, since the film’s claims rest heavily on prior work.
Source material: “Cloaked in anonymity, Israeli soldiers describe mass civilian killings in 'NAZA',” NPR.
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