The director of The Voice of Hind Rajab refused to accept an award at the Berlin International Film Festival this week after an Israeli general was honoured at the same event, saying she could not celebrate while justice remained unaddressed.
Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania declined to receive the “Most Valuable Film” prize during the Cinema for Peace gathering on Monday, which was held alongside the festival. Instead of taking the trophy with her, she chose to leave it behind as a symbolic gesture.
In her speech, Ben Hania said she did not feel gratitude in that moment but rather a deep sense of responsibility. She used the platform to highlight the killing of five-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, who died after Israeli forces opened fire on her family’s car in Gaza in 2024. Paramedics attempting to rescue her were also shot at.
“Justice means accountability. Without accountability, there is no peace,” she said, adding that Hind, her family members, and the paramedics lost their lives with the complicity of powerful governments and institutions around the world.
She stressed that she could not allow their deaths to become part of what she described as a polite narrative about peace while the systems that enabled the violence remained unchanged.
“So tonight, I will not take this award home,” she said. “I leave it here as a reminder. And when peace is pursued as a legal and moral obligation, rooted in accountability for genocide, then I will come back and accept it with joy.”
Ben Hania further argued that Hind’s death was not an isolated tragedy but part of a broader pattern of violence. She criticised political leaders who describe civilian killings as self-defence or complicated circumstances, while also dismissing global protests calling for accountability.
“Peace requires justice and accountability, not glossy slogans,” she said.
The film is based on the real events surrounding Hind Rajab, who was trapped inside her family’s car on January 29, 2024, after it came under Israeli army fire in Gaza City. Her fate remained uncertain for nearly two weeks before she was eventually found dead.
According to the Palestine Red Crescent Society, Hind had been travelling with relatives, including her teenage cousin, while trying to flee fighting in northern Gaza when the vehicle was targeted.
The film focuses on the heartbreaking audio recording of Hind’s final phone call to rescuers, during which she pleaded for help while surrounded by gunfire.
The incident sparked international outrage after reports emerged that Israel initially attempted to deny responsibility for her death, with critics calling the killing unjust and demanding an independent investigation.
