When: Wednesday, March 10, 2021, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PMWhere: Online
The International State Crime Initiative (ISCI) is delighted to welcome Mohammad Bakri and Michael Sfard for a screening of the documentary ‘Jenin, Jenin’ (2002, 54 min), and a discussion of Israeli Court’s recent ruling to ban the film. The online event will be chaired by Neve Gordon (Queen Mary University of London, School of Law).
‘Jenin, Jenin’, a documentary by Mohammad Bakri, tells the story of Israel’s extensive military operation in the Jenin refugee camp during the Second Intifada from the Palestinian residents’ point of view. Over a period of almost two decades, various lawsuits and petitions were filed against Bakri, as part of an ongoing political campaign to stifle criticism of Israel’s rights abusive policies, and particularly the use of artistic platforms to voice such criticism. Following a libel suit filed by an IDF soldier, in January, 2021, an Israeli District Court banned all screenings of ‘Jenin, Jenin’, instructed the confiscation of all the film’s copies, and ordered Bakri to compensate the plaintiff and cover his expenses at a sum of almost 50,000 pounds.
We invite you to watch ‘Jenin, Jenin’ and participate in a discussion about silencing, censorship, and intimidation as means deployed by the state and its agents in order to evade legitimate critique of its rights abusive actions.
Mohammad Bakri is a Palestinian director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Bakri began his professional acting career in theatre, and over the years played in dozens of local and international films and TV shows. He produced and directed three documentary films focusing on the Palestinian struggle: ‘1948’ (1998), ‘Jenin, Jenin’ (2002), and ‘Since You Left’ (2004).
Michael Sfard is a leading Israeli human rights attorney, who represents Israeli and Palestinian human rights and peace organizations, movements and activists. He is an expert in international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Sfard is the author of The Wall and the Gate: Israel, Palestine, and the Legal Battle for Human Rights (2018), and a co-author of The ABC of the OPT: A Legal Lexicon of the Israeli Control over the Occupied Palestinian Territory (2018). He represented Bakri together with attorney Hussein Abu Hussein.
**Please make sure to register in advance. Instructions on how to join will be sent on the day of the event.