Israeli army chief Eyal Zamir instructed the military's top legal official Monday to examine the possibility of taking legal action against the Gaza war documentary NAZA and its makers after the film won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival.
The film exposes the Israeli army's crimes committed during the genocidal war in Gaza based on testimonies from Israeli soldiers.
The directive came during a consultative meeting Zamir held with senior military commanders Monday evening, according to Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth daily.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Foreign Ministry and the military spokesperson are holding intensive discussions to formulate a media campaign against the film, the outlet reported.
According to an Israeli army statement, Zamir claimed that the film was "a deliberate attempt to directly undermine the legitimacy of the army and the State of Israel."
According to the army statement, Zamir ordered the formation of an interagency and multidisciplinary team headed by the army's planning directorate chief and including experts from Israel and abroad to "develop ways and tools to address" what he described as "false allegations" against the Israeli army and its soldiers.
Zamir also instructed the military attorney general to examine and pursue possible legal action concerning "the film and those involved in it."
Despite describing the film's content as "false allegations," Zamir also ordered an examination of information-security aspects and those potentially involved in leaking classified material used in producing the film, according to the statement.
The film received widespread acclaim during its screening at the Venice Film Festival and was met with a sustained 25-minute standing ovation before receiving the Special Jury Prize.
The film presents testimonies and information about Israeli bombing methods and military operations in the Gaza Strip and points to the use of surveillance technologies and artificial intelligence to identify potential targets.
It also features testimonies from Israeli military personnel who said they witnessed residential areas used by Palestinians in Gaza as shelters being burned as well as people being killed while distributing food.
The film's title, "NAZA," refers to an acronym used by Israeli military intelligence to denote the number of civilians expected to be killed in an airstrike.
The Israeli offensive has killed more than 73,000 people, wounded over 174,000 and caused massive destruction affecting about 90% of the civilian infrastructure in Gaza since October 2023.
