NAZA is a documentary that premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2026, where it won the Special Jury Prize. It is built on anonymous, disguised interviews with 24 Israeli soldiers and intelligence officers who raise allegations about civilian deaths and AI-assisted targeting during the Gaza war.

Who ordered the investigation into the film's sources?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a letter to the IDF Chief of the General Staff, the head of the Shin Bet and the attorney general asking them to identify the film's interviewees and pursue prosecution.

What is Netanyahu accusing the interviewees of?

According to Haaretz and UPI, Netanyahu alleges the participants committed information security offenses, criminal defamation and harm to Israel's diplomatic and security interests, including disclosure of classified material from a sensitive intelligence unit.

What has the Israeli military said about the film?

The IDF issued a statement on October 1, 2026, saying the documentary 'distorts facts' and that the military 'has acted and continues to act humanely,' according to UPI.

Has anyone in the film been identified or charged?

As of this report, no interviewee has been publicly named or charged, and authorities have not confirmed whether a formal investigation has been opened.

World · News

Netanyahu Orders Probe Into Israeli Soldiers Featured in Gaza Film NAZA

Published: October 12, 2026 at 10:44 PM UTC

In brief

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed the military, the Shin Bet and the attorney general to identify and prosecute roughly two dozen anonymous soldiers and intelligence officers who spoke in the Gaza war documentary NAZA. He accuses them of leaking classified information and defaming Israel; the film's directors won a Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival for the project.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded a criminal investigation into the identities of about two dozen Israeli soldiers and intelligence officers who gave anonymous, disguised interviews for the documentary NAZA, which examines civilian deaths during the Israeli military's Gaza offensive. The order was issued on October 11-12, 2026, according to Haaretz and UPI.

What Netanyahu Ordered

Netanyahu sent a letter to three officials asking them to open a thorough investigation into the film's participants and to pursue prosecution, according to UPI and Haaretz. He accused the interviewees of disclosing classified information, criminal defamation, and harming Israel's diplomatic and security interests, specifically citing an alleged breach of information security inside a sensitive intelligence unit.

Officials Netanyahu addressed his order to
Official	Role	What Netanyahu asked
Eyal Zamir	IDF Chief of the General Staff	Identify soldiers in the film and pursue prosecution
David Zini	Head of the Shin Bet security agency	Investigate alleged security breaches
Gali Baharav-Miara	Attorney General	Pursue criminal charges against participants

The film presents a false, misleading and biased narrative.

— Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister

What NAZA Shows

NAZA premiered on September 10, 2026, at the Venice International Film Festival, where directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor received the Special Jury Prize, according to UPI. According to UPI, the title 'NAZA' translates to 'Collateral Damage.' The film is built on interviews with 24 Israeli soldiers and intelligence officers, including members of the signals-intelligence Unit 8200, whose faces and voices are disguised.

According to Al Jazeera, the interviewees in NAZA describe military protocols and raise allegations that artificial intelligence-assisted targeting systems contributed to civilian deaths in Gaza.

Reactions and Press Freedom Concerns

The Israeli military issued a lengthy statement on October 1, 2026, rejecting the film's claims. 'The IDF has acted and continues to act humanely,' the military said, according to UPI, adding that the documentary 'distorts facts.'

According to Al Jazeera, Israel's culture minister threatened to revoke the citizenship of Abraham and Szor, and a counter-documentary titled 'NAZA: The Real Story,' featuring soldiers disputing the film's allegations, has circulated. Al Jazeera reported that 43 Israeli rights groups issued statements defending the filmmakers.

Index on Censorship, a press freedom organisation, reported that protesters gathered outside the home of a filmmaker's parent and that the office of +972 Magazine, which has published related reporting, was evacuated after threats of violence. The organisation said the episode amounts to pressure that could deter Israeli self-critical filmmaking, though it noted few Israelis have actually seen the film itself.

Background: The Gaza War

The war began after the October 7, 2023 attack. According to Gaza's Ministry of Health, cited by Al Jazeera, more than 74,000 Palestinians, including at least 21,000 children, have been killed in Gaza since the war started.

As of this report, no interviewee in NAZA has been named or charged, and the attorney general's office, the IDF and the Shin Bet have not publicly confirmed whether a formal investigation has been opened in response to Netanyahu's letter.

Questions

What is NAZA?: NAZA is a documentary that premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2026, where it won the Special Jury Prize. It is built on anonymous, disguised interviews with 24 Israeli soldiers and intelligence officers who raise allegations about civilian deaths and AI-assisted targeting during the Gaza war.
Who ordered the investigation into the film's sources?: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a letter to the IDF Chief of the General Staff, the head of the Shin Bet and the attorney general asking them to identify the film's interviewees and pursue prosecution.
What is Netanyahu accusing the interviewees of?: According to Haaretz and UPI, Netanyahu alleges the participants committed information security offenses, criminal defamation and harm to Israel's diplomatic and security interests, including disclosure of classified material from a sensitive intelligence unit.
What has the Israeli military said about the film?: The IDF issued a statement on October 1, 2026, saying the documentary 'distorts facts' and that the military 'has acted and continues to act humanely,' according to UPI.
Has anyone in the film been identified or charged?: As of this report, no interviewee has been publicly named or charged, and authorities have not confirmed whether a formal investigation has been opened.

Sources

This piece was prepared with artificial intelligence and passed an automated source check before publication. If you see an error, ask for a correction. Request a correction or reply · How we make this

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