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Israeli Film ‘Come Closer,’ Inspired by Death of Director’s Brother, Selected to Represent Israel in Oscars Race
Actress Lia Elalouf as Eden in a scene from Tom Nesher’s feature film “Close Closer.” Photo: Provided.
Tom Nesher’s directorial debut “Come Closer” won best feature film at Israel’s Ophir Awards on Monday night and will go on to be the Jewish state’s official selection for consideration in the 97th Academy Awards in the category of best international feature film.
“Come Closer” won a total of four Ophir awards on Monday, presented by the Israeli Academy for Film and Television, including best leading actress for the film debut of Lia Elalouf, best editing, and best director for Nesher, who is the daughter of acclaimed director Avi Nesher. The film, which Tom also wrote, received a total of 12 nominations.
On Monday night, Nesher went on stage to accept her awards while wearing an ensemble that included a black T-shirt with Hebrew words calling for the release of the remaining 97 hostages held by Hamas since the terrorist organization’s deadly rampage across southern Israel on Oct. 7.
“Come Closer” is about a young woman named Eden who struggles to cope with the sudden death of her brother, who was killed in a car accident. When she discovers her brother had a secret girlfriend, Eden finds her and together the two women are bonded in grief but their relationship also becomes obsessive, passionate, and dangerous. The film was inspired by the death of Tom’s own brother, Ari Nesher, who was killed in 2018 in a hit-and-run accident at the age of 17.
“This film was created for my brother,” Nesher told The Algemeiner earlier this year about her debut film. “I wanted to make a film that he would like. So not a family drama [or] sad film, but a coming-of-age, funny, sexy, full of life — just like an exciting film for him to watch also.”
“The process that I was going through [after Aris death] was very similar to the process that the characters were going through,” she added. “This film became kind of like my lifeline. I was coping with the grief I was dealing with through making this film, which is very full of love and passion.”
“Come Closer” made its world premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival, where it won the viewpoint award, and premiered in Israel at the Jerusalem Film Festival in July, where it took home the award for best first feature and an actress prize for Elalouf. It will be released to the general public in Israel this week, according to Deadline.
Also at the Ophir Awards on Monday night, the late filmmaker Yahav Viner, who was killed in his kibbutz of Kfar Aza during the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre, was posthumously awarded the Ophir for best short film for his final project, “The Son.” His widow, filmmaker Shaylee Atary, accepted the award on his behalf.
The post Israeli Film ‘Come Closer,’ Inspired by Death of Director’s Brother, Selected to Represent Israel in Oscars Race first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Trump Is Lying When He Speaks of Peace
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with government officials in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2025. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Donald Trump on Saturday of lying when the US president said during his Gulf tour this week that he wanted peace in the region.
On the contrary, said Khamenei, the United States uses its power to give “10-ton bombs to the Zionist (Israeli) regime to drop on the heads of Gaza’s children.”
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates on Friday that Iran had to move quickly on a US proposal for its nuclear program or “something bad’s going to happen.”
His remarks, said Khamenei, “aren’t even worth responding to.” They are an “embarrassment to the speaker and the American people,” Khamenei added.
“Undoubtedly, the source of corruption, war, and conflict in this region is the Zionist regime — a dangerous, deadly cancerous tumor that must be uprooted; it will be uprooted,” he said at an event at a religious center in Tehran, according to state media.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Trump speaks about peace while simultaneously making threats.
“Which should we believe?” Pezeshkian said at a naval event in Tehran. “On the one hand, he speaks of peace and on the other, he threatens with the most advanced tools of mass killing.”
Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. “We are not seeking war,” Pezeshkian said.
While Trump said on Friday that Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear program, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received any such proposal. “There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes…” he said.
Araqchi warned on Saturday that Washington’s constant change of stance prolongs nuclear talks, state TV reported.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that America repeatedly defines a new framework for negotiations that prolongs the process,” the broadcast quoted Araqchi as saying.
Pezeshkian said Iran would not “back down from our legitimate rights”.
“Because we refuse to bow to bullying, they say we are source of instability in the region,” he said.
A fourth round of Iran-U.S. talks ended in Oman last Sunday. A new round has not been scheduled yet.
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Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday
Doha, Qatar. Photo: StellarD via Wikimedia Commons.
A new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel is underway in Qatar’s Doha, Hamas official Taher al-Nono told Reuters on Saturday.
He said the two sides were discussing all issues without “pre-conditions.”
Nono said Hamas was “keen to exert all the effort needed” to help mediators make the negotiations a success, adding there was “no certain offer on the table.”
The negotiations come despite Israel preparing to expand operations in the Gaza Strip as they seek “operational control” in some areas of the war-torn enclave.
The return to negotiations also comes after US President Donald Trump ended a Middle East tour on Friday with no apparent progress towards a new ceasefire, although he acknowledged Gaza’s growing hunger crisis and the need for aid deliveries.
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Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during an interview with Reuters in The Hague, Netherlands, Feb. 12, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
i24 News – Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan has stepped down temporarily as an investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct by United Nations investigators is nearing its final phase, Reuters reported on Friday citing sources from the international court.
Khan allegedly forced sexual intercourse upon a member of staff on multiple occasions, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, linking the allegations to Khan’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant.
A statement is expected later today announcing that Khan is going on administrative leave, according to a source in the prosecutor’s office.
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