IOF kill freed Palestinian prisoner, abduct Oscar-winning filmmaker

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies + Al Mayadeen
25 Mar 2025 10:10

Israeli forces escalated their operations across the West Bank, killing a freed Palestinian prisoner in Qalqilya, detaining an Oscar-winning filmmaker, and continuing assaults on Tulkarm and Jenin.

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Israeli forces deploy during a raid at the Balata refugee camp east of Nablus in the occupied West Bank on March 24, 2025 (AFP)

The freed Palestinian prisoner, Bara’a Miskawi, was killed following hours of armed confrontations with Israeli special forces in the al-Naqqar neighborhood of Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank, amid widespread incursions and detentions across various areas.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that Israeli forces stormed the town of Beit Fajjar, raiding the al-Muthallath, al-Samaqah, and central neighborhoods. They fired live bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas at Palestinians, injuring one Palestinian.

Israeli forces also carried out extensive incursions across the West Bank, targeting the al-Ain refugee camp in Nablus, Beitunia west of Ramallah, and the al-Masayef neighborhood in the city.

Oscar-winning Palestinian filmmaker abducted

In a separate event, the Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, Hamdan Ballal, was assaulted by Israeli settlers and abducted by the Israeli military on Monday in the occupied West Bank, according to the film's co-director, Yuval Abraham.

In a post on X, Abraham stated that a group of settlers had attacked Ballal, inflicting head and stomach injuries that caused him to bleed.

"They beat him and he has injuries in his head and stomach, bleeding. Soldiers invaded the ambulance he called, and took him. No sign of him since," Abraham wrote.

A group of settlers just lynched Hamdan Ballal, co director of our film no other land. They beat him and he has injuries in his head and stomach, bleeding. Soldiers invaded the ambulance he called, and took him. No sign of him since.
— Yuval Abraham יובל אברהם (@yuval_abraham) March 24, 2025

Basel Adra, another co-director of the documentary, said Ballal "is still missing after soldiers abducted him, injured and bleeding."

I'm standing with Karam, Hamdan's 7 year old son, near the blood of Hamdan's in his house, after settlers lynched him. Hamdan, co-director of our film No Other Land, is still missing after soldiers abducted him, injured and bleeding. This is how they erase Masafer Yatta. pic.twitter.com/72pT3UF3kj
— Basel Adra (@basel_adra) March 24, 2025

The lawyer representing Hamdan Ballal has not been able to contact her client.

Lea Tsemel, who is also representing two other Palestinians who were detained in the village of Susiya, told the Associated Press that although police said her clients were being held at a military base for medical treatment, she has still not been able to reach them and has no further information on their whereabouts.

The incident occurred in the southern West Bank village of Susiya, according to the anti-occupation NGO Center for Jewish Nonviolence, whose members reported witnessing and filming the events firsthand.

Filmed in the nearby area of Masafer Yatta, the documentary follows a young Palestinian grappling with forced displacement as the Israeli military demolishes his community’s homes to clear space for a military firing zone.

Ongoing attacks on Tulkarm, Jenin

Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued their assault on Tulkarm and its refugee camp for the 58th consecutive day and on the Nur Shams refugee camp for the 45th day, amid military reinforcements and forced displacement of residents.

In Jenin, the Israeli assault has persisted for 64 consecutive days, involving home demolitions, arson, and the conversion of civilian houses into military outposts.

Israeli forces deployed additional military reinforcements and bulldozers in the Jenin refugee camp, where they continued razing land, widening roads, and opening new routes. The occupation troops have also been firing live ammunition in the vicinity of the camp while infantry units move through its neighborhoods, accompanied by intensified drone surveillance.

Since launching its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, the Israeli military and settlers have escalated attacks across the occupied West Bank, including al-Quds, resulting in the killing of approximately 930 Palestinians and injuring nearly 7,000 others, according to official Palestinian figures.