'The Voice of Hind Rajab' Stuns Venice With Its Longest Standing Ovation of 22 Minutes Amid Tears and

[Uncle Joe]

‘Free Palestine’ Chants

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One of the most talked-about films going into the festival, the powerful and gut-wrenching drama — from Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania — tells the true story of 5-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, who was killed in the early stages of the war in Gaza. The feature received a huge 22-minute standing ovation, the longest of the festival so far. As the ovation surpassed 20 minutes, and in a clear effort to get the room to disperse, the lights were dimmed in the theatre. The clapping continued.

While fleeing with her family from Gaza City in January 2024, the car Rajab was traveling in was shelled, killing her uncle, aunt and three cousins. She was left stranded for hours in the vehicle while on the phone to the Palestinian Red Cross Society as paramedics attempted to rescue her. When she was eventually reached, both Rajab and the paramedics were found dead, with media investigations concluding that an Israeli tank had likely fired 335 rounds into the car. The phone recording of Rajab’s voice is used in the film.

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“Hind’s story carries the weight of an entire people, it is not hers alone. Her voice is one amongst 19000 children who lost their lives in Gaza in the last two years alone. It is the voice of every mother, father, doctor, teacher, artist, journalist, volunteer, paramedic, each with the right to live, to dream, to exist in dignity, yet all of it was stolen in front of unblinking eyes. And these are only the voices we know. Beyond every number is a story that never got to be told.”

Kilani added: “Hind’s story is a about a child crying out, ‘Save me.’ And the haunting question is: how have we let a child beg for life and go unheard? No one can live in peace while even one child is still fighting for life. Let Hind Rajab’s voice echo in every theatre, let it remind you of the silence the world has built around Gaza, let it name the genocide that silence protects and let it pierce the word: enough.”

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https://variety.com/2025/film/festivals/voice-of-hind-rajab-venice-premiere-standing-ovation-1236505878/