TRT World's investigative documentary 'Holy Redemption' has won the Best Documentary and Programme Award at the 7th Al Jazeera Balkans Documentary Film Festival in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The 7th Al Jazeera Balkans Documentary Film Festival, one of the most prestigious events bringing together the documentary industry in recent years, focused on Palestine this year. Taking "Justice?" as the theme, the festival attracted documentary filmmakers, distributors, TV channel representatives, and media professionals from around the world.
'Holy Redemption', which had its national premiere in Istanbul's Atlas Cinema on August 24, made its international debut at the festival in Sarajevo. The documentary, one of the festival’s standout films, won the Best Documentary and Programme Award and received widespread acclaim from audiences and professionals from all over the world.
The documentary brings back the painful memories of the Srebrenica massacre, recognised as genocide by the United Nations, while also laying bare the genocidal war being carried out by Israel in Palestine. The film’s screening in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the memories of the Srebrenica Genocide are still fresh, establishes an emotional link between these two massacres.
As Israel's brutal war in Gaza continues since October 7, TRT World has produced a documentary highlighting the equally dark and quietly advancing second front of this atrocity. 'Holy Redemption' sheds light on the land theft by Israeli settlers, told through the perspectives of both witnesses and perpetrators.
The filming of the documentary began two months after TRT World’s Investigative Team infiltrated radical Jewish settler groups in the West Bank, following the start of the Israeli war in Gaza on October 7.
The documentary documents how Palestinian lands are being gradually occupied with Israeli support. For the first time, the process is fully exposed to the world through footage obtained from within the outposts where the radical group known as “Hilltop Youth,” referred to by Israeli media as Israel’s version of Daesh, is being trained.
Perpetrators and witnesses of the occupation speak out in this documentary
Interviews with Israeli activists, former Israeli soldiers, radical settler leaders, and Israeli parliament members reveal Israel's strategies for displacing Palestinians and systematically stealing land. The documentary exposes how illegal settlements are established and Palestinian homes are destroyed.
Notable interviews in the film include Daniella Weiss, leader of the Nachala settler movement; Zvi Sukkot, a former Hilltop Youth member and current parliamentarian; former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert; activist lawyer Michael Sfard; Hagit Ofran, leader of the Peace Now movement; and Nadav Weiman, a former sniper in the Israeli army.
The award-winning documentary will continue telling the story of Palestine
TRT World's 'Holy Redemption' has garnered acclaim since its premiere for its powerful storytelling, compelling evidence, and fearless exposure of injustices in the region.
Celebrated as a triumph in investigative journalism, the film has been praised by the jury and festival participants for its impactful message and its role in giving a true voice to the Israeli oppression in Palestine.
Speaking after the screening of the documentary at the festival, TRT's Deputy Director General Omer Faruk Tanriverdi said, “With the screening of our documentary in Sarajevo, we emphasized that another genocide is occurring before the world's eyes on these lands where the pain of Srebrenica is still fresh. In 53 minutes, we exposed Israel’s 75-year occupation policies and vividly portrayed the brutality of radical Israeli settlers in Palestine.”
Tanriverdi added, "This award is even more meaningful to us than the Emmy Award we received recently, as our aim is to create global awareness about the genocide in Palestine through our documentary. As TRT World, we have steadfastly supported the Palestinian struggle even before October 7, and Holy Redemption is a result of those efforts. We hope everyone watches and shares this significant journalistic achievement. "
In the coming days, 'Holy Redemption' will be shown on various international platforms, keeping global attention on the genocide in Palestine.
