RSS
IDF Denies ‘Entirely Baseless’ Claims of Palestinian Director of ‘No Other Land’ Being Beaten During Detention
Oscar-winning Palestinian director Hamdan Ballal (2nd L) is greeted by family and friends upon his arrival in the village of Susya. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa via Reuters Connect
The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Wednesday morning that allegations of Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal being physically assaulted by Israeli security forces while being detained in connection to a rock-throwing incident in the West Bank are “entirely baseless.”
Ballal, who co-directed the Oscar-winning film “No Other Land” which is highly critical of the Israeli military, was released Tuesday morning from police custody after being arrested, along with others, by the IDF the prior night on suspicion of throwing rocks at Israeli security forces. The incident took place near Ballal’s home village of Susya, which is part of a collection of Palestinian communities known as Masafer Yatta, in the West Bank.
Fellow “No Other Land” co-director, Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, claimed that during Ballal’s arrest, he was “handcuffed all night and beaten in a military base” by Israeli forces. Basel Adra, another co-director of the film, made a similar accusation on X about Ballal being “beaten” by Israeli soldiers during his detention.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement to The Algemeiner on Wednesday morning that the detainees were in fact handcuffed throughout Monday night at a military detention facility. However, “claims that [they] were beaten during the night at an IDF detention facility were found to be entirely baseless.”
“IDF forces facilitated medical treatment for the detainees after the initial transfer of the suspects to the Israel Police, and throughout the night, the detainees remained in a military detention facility while handcuffed in accordance with operational protocol,” the statement noted. “Yesterday [Tuesday] morning, the three detainees were transferred by the IDF to the Israel Police for questioning on suspicion of rock hurling, property damage, and endangering regional security. Following their questioning, the three were released by the police under conditions that include a ban on contact with other individuals involved in the incident and personal bail. During the incident, an Israeli civilian was injured and required medical treatment.”
The IDF added that its investigation into the incident on Monday night is ongoing and it expects to make further arrests. The Israeli military previously denied allegations made by the co-directors of “No Other Land” about Ballal being “abducted” by IDF soldiers while he was being treated inside an ambulance for injuries he sustained. A spokesperson for the IDF said that “contrary to claims, no Palestinian was apprehended from inside an ambulance.”
According to the IDF, the incident on Monday night began when “several terrorists” threw rocks at Israeli citizens near Susya, causing damage to their vehicles. A “violent confrontation” then broke out between both parties, which included rock throwing by Palestinians and Israelis, the IDF said. When Israeli soldiers and police officers arrived at the scene, “several terrorists began hurling rocks at the security forces,” the military spokesperson said. Israeli forces ultimately arrested three Palestinians – including Ballal – and an Israeli civilian in connection to the violence against security personnel.
“No Other Land,” which won the award for best documentary feature film at the 97th Academy Awards earlier this month, focuses on the demolition of Palestinian homes in Masafer Yatta by the Israeli military. Masafer Yatta is a collection of villages in the southern West Bank that were illegally built on land Israel had claimed for a military training zone in the 1980s. The film was made by a Palestinian-Israeli collective of four young activists – Abraham, Ballal, Adra, and Israeli cinematographer Rachel Szor.
The post IDF Denies ‘Entirely Baseless’ Claims of Palestinian Director of ‘No Other Land’ Being Beaten During Detention first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
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.”
RSS
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.
RSS
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.