Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanded criminal investigations and prosecutions for anonymous soldiers who testified in the award-winning documentary NAZA, alleging the film spreads false libel and reveals top-secret information about military strikes in Gaza.
In a formal directive sent to the attorney general, the director of the Shin Bet, and the leader of the Israel Defense Forces, Benjamin Netanyahu called for an inquiry into the military personnel who offered anonymous accounts in the film NAZA. The film details military operations in Gaza.
Writing in a letter to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, and Shin Bet head David Zini, Netanyahu demanded authorities act to uncover the identities of all participating soldiers and prosecute them for serious information security offenses, criminal defamation, and harm to diplomatic and security interests.
Documentary Details Gaza Strikes
NAZA takes its title from a Hebrew acronym used euphemistically by military intelligence to indicate expected civilian casualties in an airstrike. Directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor and produced by the Guardian, the documentary features testimonies from 24 digitally masked individuals who the filmmakers say are soldiers, mainly from intelligence units.
Interviewees allege mass killing bolstered by an AI-powered targeting system and permission for strikes carrying up to 500 expected civilian casualties. The documentary premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, where it won the special jury prize after receiving a record-setting ovation.
Netanyahu criticized the film as a false, misleading, and biased narrative that defames the State of Israel and the [Israeli military]
and creates a severe breach in information security. The film was produced by the Guardian and was built on revelations originally published between 2023 and 2025 by the Guardian alongside the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and the Hebrew-language outlet Local Call.
Bay Area screenings took place at several venues, including the New People Cinema, Presidio Theatre, Alamo Drafthouse New Mission, and Roxie Theater in San Francisco, the New Parkway Theater in Oakland, Rialto Cinemas Elmwood in Berkeley, Rialto Cinemas Sebastopol, and Alamo Drafthouse Mountain View.
Protesters Rally At Screenings
It holds a 100 percent critics approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is supported by MK2 and the Guardian. Jordan Mintzer reviewed the project for The Hollywood Reporter, describing it as a sober and thoroughly documented bombshell of an exposé.
As the film expanded, screenings drew both support and intense protests. During a screening at the Mill Valley Film Festival in San Rafael, California, roughly 30 protesters gathered outside the Smith Rafael Film Center wearing white T-shirts stating they stand with Israel while waving Israeli and American flags.
Demonstrators also passed out QR codes directing people to a counter-documentary and displayed video footage on two trucks. Similar demonstrations occurred during screenings in New York and outside the Laemmle NoHo 7 in North Hollywood, where the Israeli-American Council organized a protest featuring chief operating officer Aya Shechter, who stated that wherever lies are told about Israel, they will show up with the truth.
Military Rejects Allegations
The military stated that it categorically
rejected the whistleblowers’ allegations. The military asserted that target selection and strike approvals are made by human personnel only
and denied that directives ever granted automatic authorization for fixed civilian casualty numbers such as 20 civilians for a junior operative or 200 civilians for a senior commander.
A competing documentary titled Naza: The Real Story features interviews with soldiers and senior officers describing combat experiences inside the Gaza Strip, including encounters with weapons hidden inside children’s bedrooms beneath beds and near UNRWA facilities. While 43 Israeli rights groups defended the filmmakers of NAZA against political threats, Netanyahu and Culture Minister Miki Zohar have threatened the filmmakers.
What disciplinary actions or legal charges will ultimately be brought against the anonymous soldiers, and how authorities will identify them, remains unspecified.
