More than 1,500 Israeli filmmakers have signed a petition in support of Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, directors of the documentary NAZA, after Israel’s Culture Minister, Miki Zohar, threatened to revoke their citizenship and accused them of “treason against the state.”

The petition was initiated by filmmaker Liran Atzmor and has been signed by figures including Nadav Lapid, Orna Ben Dor, Hagai Levi, Shai Carmeli-Pollak and Shlomi Elkabetz. The text denounces a campaign of “vilification and incitement” against the filmmakers and warns that the rhetoric used by the authorities is approaching a situation that could encourage threats to their physical safety.

NAZA, produced by The Guardian, examines the targeting systems used by the Israeli military during the attacks on Gaza. The documentary features interviews with 24 Israeli military and intelligence personnel and draws on investigations published between 2023 and 2025 by +972 Magazine, Local Call and The Guardian.

The film received the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, where its premiere was followed by a 25-minute standing ovation. Following the award, Zohar accused Abraham and Szor of being willing to “harm their homeland in order to receive applause from antisemites around the world” and announced his intention to begin the process of revoking their citizenship.

The statements also prompted reactions from international film institutions. Julie Huntsinger, artistic director of the Telluride Film Festival, described any threat to the filmmakers’ citizenship as unacceptable, while the Locarno Film Festival defended filmmakers’ right to address urgent subjects without fear of reprisals. Tricia Tuttle, director of the Berlinale, said that in a democratic society, the response to a film should be dialogue and scrutiny, rather than intimidation or state punishment.

Abraham and Szor won the 2025 Academy Award for Best Documentary for No Other Land, made alongside Palestinian filmmakers Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal. Following the award, Abraham’s family home was attacked by a far-right group.

NAZA will now continue its international festival run with a screening at the San Sebastián Film Festival next week, followed by its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival in late September.