No Other Land
On February 10th, I took a day trip to Boston and stumbled upon a small independent cinema that was showing an Oscar-nominated documentary, No Other Land. After watching the trailer, I immediately knew I wanted to attend the 4:30 showing. The film follows two men, Basel and Yuval, one Palestinian and the other Israeli. Both of them spend their time documenting the violence and injustices occurring in the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian territory located on the border of Jordan that is under Israeli military control. Throughout the film, we, the audience, were able to see the tense division between Yuval and Basel, the beautiful friendship they created with one another, and the heartbreaking realities of the families living in the West Bank.
The documentary ended with a statement claiming that filming was concluded after the events of October 7th, 2023, as it was filmed in the years before, and that the situation in the West Bank had worsened dramatically ever since. It made me think about what Yuval and Basel's friendship is like now and, on a larger note, the relationship between Palestinians and Israelis. I questioned what conflicts like the terrorist attacks of October 7th, the genocide in Gaza, and Israeli settlements in the West Bank mean for interpersonal relationships between the two groups.; what do these conflicts mean for Palestinians and Jewish People around the world?; Arabs and Jewish people?; Palestinian rights activists and Jewish rights activists? Is it possible now, after thousands and thousands of people have been martyred in the past two years since 10/07, for a middle ground to rise and bring some sort of unity? What constitutes this middle ground between Palestinians and Israelis? Can love, understanding, and mutual respect overcome the deep hatred dividing these groups?
I believe that there is; I hope that there is. This documentary solidified this for me. Basel and Yuval’s friendship was genuine, loving, and caring, and capable of acting as an example for everyone else's unification. Despite their differences and doubts, they always managed to work together, trust one another, and have peaceful discussions about their lives together. Yuval even created meaningful relationships with the Palestinians around the West Bank who had doubted his motives before. I feel like humanity and the connection every person has through our humanity is such an important factor in understanding someone. As a global society, we must channel that humanity and be willing to see everyone for who they are: human.