Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for an investigation into the sources behind a documentary that alleges the Israeli military used artificial intelligence-based targeting systems during operations in which Palestinian civilians in Gaza were killed. Netanyahu, posting on X on Saturday evening, called on the chief of general staff, the head of the Shin Bet, and the attorney general to open a comprehensive investigation into those who participated in the film and to pursue charges covering information security violations, criminal libel, and harm to the country's diplomatic and security interests. He separately characterised the film as presenting a narrative he described as false, misleading, and one-sided, and as damaging to how Israel is perceived abroad.
The documentary, titled NAZA, draws on accounts from 24 unnamed individuals who served in the Israeli military and allege that the army deployed certain systems in ways that resulted in civilian deaths in the Gaza Strip. The film has received award recognition, including a special jury prize at the Venice International Film Festival, where it drew 25 minutes of sustained applause from the audience.
The Israeli military released a statement the previous month disputing the whistleblowers' claims in their entirety, characterising portions of what they put forward as internally contradictory and without basis. The organisation maintained that decisions to select and approve strike targets rest entirely with human personnel, consistent with the military's established guidelines.
Army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir ordered an inquiry into suspected leaks of classified military information used during the film's production and directed that potential legal proceedings against those involved be weighed.
The film's title draws on a Hebrew abbreviation used within Israeli military planning to denote anticipated civilian harm from air strikes — a condensed rendering of the phrase meaning collateral damage.
The development drew considerable political debate within Israel. Directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor have faced allegations of treason over their work on the film. Both Netanyahu and Culture Minister Miki Zohar have indicated they may move to strip those individuals of their Israeli citizenship.
Tzipi Hotovely, who leads Israel's National Public Diplomacy Directorate, presented the filmmakers behind NAZA: The Real Story with certificates of recognition the previous week, citing the production's role in responding to what the directorate characterised as false claims in the original NAZA film. The Prime Minister's Office put out a statement noting that soldiers whose testimony appears in NAZA: The Real Story dispute the findings the original claims put forward.
A group of 43 rights-focused organisations operating within Israel put forward their support for the NAZA filmmakers while also speaking out against the pressure campaign directed at them, according to media reports.
The documentary relates to the conflict that followed coordinated assaults carried out on 7 October 2023 by fighters from Hamas's Qassam Brigades and allied Palestinian armed factions on communities in southern Israel, which left 1,139 people dead and approximately 240 others held as captives. Figures from Gaza's Ministry of Health put the Palestinian death toll at a minimum of 74,000, among them no fewer than 21,000 children, over the period that followed.
