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Documentary on Torn Down Hostage Posters to Open in Select NY, LA Theaters in September
Posters highlighting the plight of Israeli hostages abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, are seen being torn down in New York. Photo: Provided
A documentary screening in select theaters in September focuses on the controversy surrounding the torn down posters that raise awareness about the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas terrorists after their attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
“TORN: The Israel-Palestine Poster War,” directed and produced by award-winning filmmaker and New Yorker Nim Shapira, chronicles the start of the now iconic “KIDNAPPED” poster campaign after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and how it turned into a point of conflict in New York City, leading to sometimes violent street confrontations between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian activists, some of the latter of whom torn down the posters across Manhattan. The 75-minute documentary “explores grief, identity, and the limits of empathy in today’s fractured public discourse,” according to a description of the film shared with The Algemeiner.
The documentary features interviews with 10 New Yorkers, including family members of hostages, the creators of the “KIDNAPPED” poster campaign, students, activists, a free speech expert, and a rabbi. “My hope – then and now – was that in New York, where we don’t have rockets or missiles flying overhead, we might be able to sit and talk. That we could create space for conversation, even disagreement, without violence,” said Shapira in a released statement. “TORN” is his first feature-length documentary.
“TORN’ began as an attempt to capture a moment when my home — New York City, where I’ve lived for the past 12 years – was being pulled apart,” the filmmaker added. “Not just by headlines, but by the emotional aftershocks of a war taking place thousands of miles away … What began as an act of solidarity [with the hostages] quickly spiraled into something far more layered: a symbolic ‘paper war’ that unfolded on the walls of New York.”
“The simple act of putting up or tearing down a poster became a political event, sparking confrontations across college campuses, neighborhoods, and social media,” Shapira noted. “Suddenly, the war in Gaza wasn’t distant – it was here, reflected on our lampposts, our subway stations, and in the heated arguments between strangers … In an era defined by polarization, ‘TORN’ is both a mirror and a spark: a reflection of how far we’ve drifted apart, and an invitation to sit, reflect, and speak-even across disagreement.”
The film will have its Oscar-qualifying theatrical run in select venues on Sept. 5. It will screen in additional cities throughout September and October, and a digital release is expected in December. More than 50 pre-release screenings are already scheduled across the US and Canada, including New York, Boston, Chicago, Toronto, San Francisco, and Miami.
“TORN” is being released by the indie label Hemdale Films, best known for the Oscar-winning classics “Platoon” and “The Last Emperor.” Following a decades-long hiatus, Hemdale relaunched under Hannover House, Inc. and “TORN” is its first release since the relaunch.
“We were waiting for the right film to reintroduce Hemdale,” said Eric Parkinson, CEO of Hannover House. “‘TORN’ is not only timely and awards-worthy — it’s the kind of bold, conversation-starting work that defines our legacy.”
Watch the trailer for “TORN: The Israel-Palestine Poster War” below.
The post Documentary on Torn Down Hostage Posters to Open in Select NY, LA Theaters in September first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Germany’s Halt to Arms Exports to Israel Is Response to Gaza Expansion Plans, Chancellor Says
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Aug. 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen
Germany’s decision to curb arms exports to Israel comes in response to Israel’s plan to expand its operations in the Gaza Strip, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday in an interview with public broadcaster ARD.
“We cannot deliver weapons into a conflict that is now being pursued exclusively by military means,” Merz said. “We want to help diplomatically, and we are doing so.”
The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s plans to expand military control over the enclave have pushed Germany to take this historically fraught step.
The chancellor said in the interview that the expansion of Israel’s operations in Gaza could claim hundreds of thousands of civilian lives and would require the evacuation of the entire city of Gaza.
“Where are these people supposed to go?” Merz said. “We can’t do that, we won’t do that, and I will not do that.”
Nevertheless, the principles of Germany’s Israel policy remain unchanged, the chancellor said.
“Germany has stood firmly by Israel’s side for 80 years. That will not change,” Merz said.
Germany is Israel’s second-biggest weapons supplier after the US and has long been one of its staunchest supporters, principally because of its historical guilt for the Nazi Holocaust – a policy known as the “Staatsraison.”
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Newsom Calls Trump’s $1 Billion UCLA Settlement Offer Extortion, Says California Won’t Bow
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference, accompanied by members of the Texas Democratic legislators, at the governor’s mansion in Sacramento, California, U.S., August 8, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Saturday that a $1 billion settlement offer by President Donald Trump’s administration for UCLA amounted to political extortion to which the state will not bow.
The University of California says it is reviewing a $1 billion settlement offer by the Trump administration for UCLA after the government froze hundreds of millions of dollars in funding over pro-Palestinian protests.
UCLA, which is part of the University of California system, said this week the government froze $584 million in funding. Trump has threatened to cut federal funds for universities over anti-Israel student protests.
“Donald Trump has weaponized the DOJ (Department of Justice) to kneecap America’s #1 public university system — freezing medical & science funding until @UCLA pays his $1 billion ransom,” the office of Newsom, a Democrat, said in a post.
“California won’t bow to Trump’s disgusting political extortion,” it added.
“This isn’t about protecting Jewish students – it’s a billion-dollar political shakedown from the pay-to-play president.”
The government alleges universities, including UCLA, allowed antisemitism during the protests and in doing so violated Jewish and Israeli students’ civil rights. The White House had no immediate comment beyond the offer.
Experts have raised free speech and academic freedom concerns over the Republican president’s threats. The University of California says paying such a large settlement would “completely devastate” the institution.
Large demonstrations took place at UCLA last year. Last week, UCLA agreed to pay over $6 million to settle a lawsuit by some students and a professor who alleged antisemitism. It was also sued this year over a 2024 violent mob attack on pro-Palestinian protesters.
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Trump Nominates State Dept Spokeswoman Bruce as US Deputy Representative to UN
FILE PHOTO: U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce speaks during her first press briefing at the State Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was nominating State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce as the next US deputy representative to the United Nations.
Bruce has been the State Department spokesperson since Trump took office in January.
In a post on social media in which Trump announced her nomination, the president said she did a “fantastic job” as State Department spokesperson. Bruce will need to be confirmed for the role by the US Senate, where Trump’s Republican Party holds a majority.
During press briefings, she has defended the Trump administration’s foreign policy decisions ranging from an immigration crackdown and visa revocations to US responses to Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza, including a widely condemned armed private aid operation in the Palestinian territory.
Bruce was previously a political contributor and commentator on Fox News for over 20 years.
She has also authored books like “Fear Itself: Exposing the Left’s Mind-Killing Agenda” that criticized liberals and left-leaning viewpoints.
In a post after Trump’s announcement, Bruce thanked him and suggested that the role was a “few weeks” away. Neither Trump nor Bruce mentioned an exact timeline in their online posts.
“Now I’m blessed that in the next few weeks my commitment to advancing America First leadership and values continues on the global stage in this new post,” Bruce wrote on X.
Trump has picked former White House national security adviser Mike Waltz to be his U.N. envoy. Waltz’s Senate confirmation for that role, wherein he will be Bruce’s boss, is still due.
Waltz was Trump’s national security adviser until he was ousted on May 1 after he was caught up in a March scandal involving a Signal chat among top Trump national security aides on military strikes in Yemen. Trump then nominated Waltz as his U.N. ambassador.