A photo of 6-year-old Hind Rajab, a Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces, was held by the stars and creators of The Voice of Hind Rajab, at the Venice Film Festival.
The docu-drama, which received a record-breaking 23 minute (and longer) standing ovation, uses real audio of the call Hind made to the Red Crescent in january 2024, after Israel shelled her family’s car while they were attempting to evacuate northern Gaza. The attack killed her aunt, uncle and cousins. Trapped in the wreckage with their bodies, and wounded herself, Hind can be heard begging for help:
“Please come to me, please come. I’m scared.”
Hind’s body was recovered days later, along with the bodies of two medics who tried to save her.
At the time of writing, Israel has not announced a formal investigation into the attack.
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In a press conference about the film, actor Saja Kilani who portrays Rana, a Red Crescent worker, said:
“The voice of Hind Rajab does not need our defence. This film is not an opinion or a fantasy. It is anchored in truth. Hind’s story carries the weight of an entire people. It’s not her alone. Her voice is one among 19,000 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 told.”
She powerfully added, “Hind’s story is about a child crying out, ‘save me!’ And the real question is, how have we let a child beg for life?”
(Feature Image Credit: Daniele Venturelli/WireImage via Getty Images)
