“No Other Land” Wins Oscar for Best Documentary Feature
Despite its critical acclaim and awards at international festivals like Berlinale, No Other Land has not secured U.S. distribution but was released in 24 other countrie
The documentary No Other Land won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards. Directed by Palestinian activist Basel Adra and Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, the film explores the alliance between the two amid the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the occupied West Bank.
It highlights Adra’s resistance to the forced displacement of his community in Masafer Yatta, where Israeli soldiers demolish homes to establish a military training zone. The film also examines the challenges in their friendship due to disparities in their living conditions, with Adra living under military law and Abraham under civilian law.
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The documentary, filmed from 2019 to 2023, incorporates archival footage from Adra’s childhood, showing his father’s activism against land appropriation. It portrays harrowing events, including home demolitions, violence, and the struggles of displaced residents.
Despite its critical acclaim and awards at international festivals like Berlinale, No Other Land has not secured U.S. distribution but was released in 24 other countries.
In their acceptance speeches, Adra and Abraham called for global action against injustice and emphasized the need for a political solution that ensures equality and safety for both peoples. Abraham acknowledged the unequal power dynamics between them but stressed their intertwined destinies
Adra said: “No Other Land reflects the harsh reality that we have been enduring for decades and still resist as we call on the world to take serious actions to stop the injustice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.”
Abraham said they made the film because together their voices were stronger.
“We see each other, the atrocious destruction of Gaza and its people which must end, the Israeli hostages brutally taken in the crime of October 7 which must be freed.
“When I look at Basel I see my brother but we are unequal. We live in a regime where I am free under civilian law and Basel is under military law that destroys his life and he cannot control.
“There is a different path — a political solution without ethnic supremacy, with national rights for both of our people. And I have to say as I’m here, the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path.
“And why? Can’t you see that we are intertwined? That my people can be truly safe if Basel’s people are truly free and safe. There is another way. It’s not too late for life, for the living.”
