Skip to content
  • Image
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Podcasts
  • Email
  • Subscribe to Ray’s Columns
  • Contact
The Arab Daily News

The Arab Daily News

Original news, features, opinions from Chicago to Jerusalem

  • About
    • About
    • Our Writers
    • Subscribe to Ray’s Columns
    • Book Store
    • Contact
    • Submit Book Reviews, Press Releases
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Corrections Policy
    • Profile on Ray Hanania
    • Submit Press Release
  • Features
    • Food
    • Book Review
    • Humor
    • Movies
    • Travel
  • Arab US Community
    • Arab Stores Targeted
    • Arab Community Network Page
    • Arab Heritage America resources
    • Directory
      • Groups & Organizations
      • Mosques, Churches
      • Restaurants
      • 2008 & 2014 Arab Media Directories
    • National Arab Heritage Month
    • Video: Chicago Arab History
    • Video: Photo Array of Chicago Arabs
    • Overview of Arabs in America
    • Hanania standup comedy
    • Arabs on the Titanic
    • Obituaries
  • Podcasts
    • Ray Hanania on Politics Podcast
    • Arab News Ray Hanania Radio
    • Arab Radio Podcast intro
    • Radio Baladi Detroit
  • Ray on Tiktok
  • Subscribe Ray’s Columns
  • Archive 2004-2013
  • Toggle search form
  • Boats with the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza are seen moored at the small island of Koufonisi, south of the island of Crete, on September 26, 2025. (Photo: AFP/ Eleftherios Elis) Courtesy of the Committee to Protect Journalists
    CPJ calls on Israel to release journalists detained on the Global Sumud Flotilla Activism
  • Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition. Arab Center Washington DC Sept. 24, 2025
    Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition American Arabs
  • WRMEA Sept 2025 issue cover
    Video Interview Delinda Hanley of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs Activism
  • ADC ArabCon Image
    ADC to issue awards for community leadsership at Convention American Arabs
  • CAIR Executive Director and co-founder Nihad Awad
    CAIR Wins Injunction Ordering U. of Missouri to Permit Mizzou Students for Justice in Palestine into Homecoming Parade American Arabs
  • Orland Township and logo
    Orland Township board shows concern for District 230 students American Arabs
  • Israeli snipers fire at Palestinians protesting in support of hunger strikers at the Gaza border with Nahal Oz. Photo copyright Gaza Strip Photographer Ahmad Hasaballah
    CAIR‑Chicago Urges DOJ to File War Crime Charges Against Naperville Man Who Joined IDF, Admitted Sniping Children Christian & Muslim
  • United Nations UN Building Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania 2019
    Denying Palestinian Officials Visas to Join UN General Assembly: Wrong and Hypocritical: American Arabs
  • United Nations UN Building Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania 2019
    UN experts urge US to grant visas to Palestinian officials, uphold diplomacy for peace Human Rights
  • Terrence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez in Las Vegas with HE Turki Alalshikh Photo courtesy of GEA
    HE Turki Alalshikh joins opening faceoff ahead of Fight Week for blockbuster Canelo-Crawford clash in Las Vegas Arab News
  • No Azure for Apartheid
    Microsoft fires a Jewish worker for taking part in the “Liberated Zone” American Arabs
  • Jeremy Ben Ami J Street President
    J Street among many Jewish groups supporting justice for Palestine and Israel Activism
  • Turki Alalshikh Boxing Las Vegas
    Turki Alalshikh Announces Multiple Bouts as Part of Public Workout Ahead of Canelo vs. Crawford Showdown American Arabs
  • 09-02-25 Orland Park Village Board
    Orland Park passes revised Gaza Ceasefire resolution Activism
  • US Arab Radio Banner logo
    US Arab Radio Partners with Arab Center Washington DC to Expand National Outreach Activism
Foreign Land, the film that Israel's Cultural Ministry doesn't want you to see. Photo courtesy of filmmaker Shlomi Eldar

Controversial Israeli film “Foreign Land” in U.S. in March

Posted on February 11, 2018February 11, 2018 By rayhanania No Comments on Controversial Israeli film “Foreign Land” in U.S. in March
SHARE ...
          
 
  

  • Tweet

Controversial Israeli film “Foreign Land” in U.S. in March

Israeli officials denounce the film and promote censorship, urging Israelis not to view it, show it or support it, which means everyone should see this documentary

[Updated]

The film tells how Israeli society slips into extremism from the personal viewpoint of an Arab actor and a Jewish journalist that search for place they could call home.

Early this week the Israeli Minister of Culture, MK Miri Regev, said at the opening of the weekly government session that the film “slanders Israel” and that no public television channel should buy or broadcast it. The film will be broadcast by “Kan” – the state run public Israeli television channel.

Israel's anti-Arab Cultural Minister Miri Regev who encourages censorship int he film industry in Israel. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia
Israel’s anti-Arab Cultural Minister Miri Regev who encourages censorship int he film industry in Israel. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

The film director, Shlomi Eldar is an award winning journalist that for the past two decades has covered the Palestinian Authority for Israel’s leading Television stations. He responded to Regev’s accusation saying that, “Foreign Land” is a documentary film, and for the past five years I filmed reality, real people in real life. To be afraid of a camera means to be afraid of the truth”.

Foreign Land, the film that Israel's Cultural Ministry doesn't want you to see. Photo courtesy of  filmmaker Shlomi Eldar
Foreign Land, the film that Israel’s Cultural Ministry doesn’t want you to see. Photo courtesy of filmmaker Shlomi Eldar

This is not the first time Minister Regev has launched an attack on the Israeli film industry. Just a few months ago Regev said that the movie “Foxtrot” by Shmulik Maoz is a “disgrace” that “tarnishes the reputation of the Israeli army”. However, this is the first time Regev called an Israeli broadcast channel not to air a film made by an Israeli film maker and already slotted for broadcast.

The film has won the “best documentary” award at the prestigious Haifa Film Festival. However, it was never screened outside of Israel. The movie’s first premier in North America will be next month in the Miami International Film Festival on 3/11/2018.

Foreign Land, the film that Israel's Cultural Ministry doesn't want you to see. Photo courtesy of  filmmaker Shlomi Eldar
Foreign Land, the film that Israel’s Cultural Ministry doesn’t want you to see. Photo courtesy of filmmaker Shlomi Eldar

The Film:
Gassan Abbas and Shlomi Eldar were both at a crossroads. Abbas was once an Israeli sit-com star, while Eldar was an Arab Affairs correspondent for the national news. Things changed: Abbas, a Palestinian, is no longer getting roles, while Eldar’s reportage is ushered to the margins of the daily news. Where does life take these men now?

Eldar’s first documentary was the impossibly moving “Precious Life,” which screened at the Festival in 2011. His follow-up is only stronger, wiser and more personal. Foreign Land tracks the mid-life detours of two extraordinary men, placing emphasis on their encounter with someone who lost everything to Israel’s ongoing conflict yet refuses to succumb to hate. This is an incisive and important film about taking distance to see things more clearly, and knowing when it’s time to start afresh.

Credits:
Director: Shlomi Eldar
Producer: Ehud Bleiberg, Yoav Ze’evi
Music: Gilad Benamram
Cinematographer: Shlomi Eldar
Editor: Halil Efrat

Here is a promo video trailer for the film:

newswire info
  • About
  • Latest Posts
rayhanania
rayhanania
Op-Ed writer, author, radio host, podcaster at The Arab Daily News
Ray Hanania is an award-winning columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.  

His award winning columns can be found at www.HANANIA.COM Subscribe FREE today

Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

Email Ray Hanania at [email protected].

Follow RayHanania at Twitter
rayhanania
Latest posts by rayhanania (see all)
  • Israelisnipers shooting and killing hospital workers in Gaza - December 11, 2023
  • CAIR Condemns Israeli Executions of Wounded, Unarmed Palestinian in West Bank   - December 11, 2023
  • Arab and Muslim American voters face a “simple choice” between Biden’s inhumanity and Trump’s edgy politics - December 9, 2023
NVP: 42

  • Tweet

SHARE ...
          
 
  
 
          
 
 Tweet 
Arab World, Israel, Middle East, Movies, News, Palestine & Jordan, Video Tags:censorship, documentary, film, Foreign land, Israel, Israeli Minister of Culture, Israelis, Miri Regev, movie, Palestine, Palestinians, Shlomi Eldar

Post navigation

Previous Post: What’s the Matter with France?
Next Post: LOVE, Valentines Day, Ash Wednesday, Fools and Stages of the Soul

Related Posts

  • Israeli Knesset Deputy Speaker Ahmad Tibi is beaten by Israeli police while participating in a protest against the relocation of the US Embassy Monday May 14, 2018. Photo courtesy of MK Ahmad Tibi
    Israel Supreme Court rejects “equality for all” bill Arab World
  • Why Muslims and Arabs should vote for Trump American Arabs
  • Israel’s Arabs not used to Democracy Arab World
  • Alice Speri of The Intercept. Photo courtesy Alice Speri
    Arab Radio: Alice Speri of The Intercept discusses Social Media censorship Activism
  • Book: Apartheid is a Crime by Mats Svensson from Cune Press
    New Book: Apartheid is a Crime, Palestinian life under occupation Arab World
  • No Azure for Apartheid
    Microsoft fires a Jewish worker for taking part in the “Liberated Zone” American Arabs

More Related Articles

Washington Report magazine needs support American Arabs
Mr. Trump: THE Job is Truth, Facts and Accountability #JakeTapper #ThisAmerican #REPORTER American Arabs
A CMEP Reflection and this American’s Experience of Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda Arab World
Stories My Father Told Me, Cune Press, Book Cover by Helen Zughaib Arab American Memoir: “Stories My Father Told Me” American Arabs
Trump and Netanyahu’s Shared Values of Nuclear Deceptions Arab World
Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) logo Trump immigration suspensions will save American lives Middle East

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Ray Hanania's 4 times a week columns at https://RayHanania.com at Substack

Enter Your Email to Subscribe to Ray Hanania’s Columns

  • OPINION COLUMNS
  • Netflix Mo Series courtesy of Wikipedia
    Mo Amer’s “Mo” on Netflix is more than just a great comedy series
    September 6, 2025
  • Photo courtesy of Journalist Abdennour Toumi
    France: Political Compromise vs Political Instability
    August 28, 2024
  • Zakia Restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia
    Arabs eat Middle East food like they are making love
    June 27, 2024
  • Zwar lamb kabob and kufta with white and yellow rice
    Zwar ranked the Best Middle East restaurant in Chicagoland suburbs
    June 8, 2024
  • Pictured: Rahm Emanuel, Afghan activist Salman Aftab who was co-chair of the Iftar dinner, and several non-Arab Muslim leaders. Also pictured is Ald. Joe Moore. Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania for Arab News
    Comprehensive look at the failings of former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel
    January 18, 2024

Creative Commons License
All work on this website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Do not edit original work. Give credit to the original source.

The Lightning Strike Radio Sun 8-10 AM

Mohammed Faheem The Lightning Strike Radio Show
Mohammed Faheem The Lightning Strike Radio Show
  • NEWS
  • Boats with the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza are seen moored at the small island of Koufonisi, south of the island of Crete, on September 26, 2025. (Photo: AFP/ Eleftherios Elis) Courtesy of the Committee to Protect Journalists
    CPJ calls on Israel to release journalists detained on the Global Sumud Flotilla
    October 2, 2025
  • Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition. Arab Center Washington DC Sept. 24, 2025
    Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition
    October 2, 2025
  • WRMEA Sept 2025 issue cover
    Video Interview Delinda Hanley of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
    September 27, 2025
  • ADC ArabCon Image
    ADC to issue awards for community leadsership at Convention
    September 19, 2025
  • CAIR Executive Director and co-founder Nihad Awad
    CAIR Wins Injunction Ordering U. of Missouri to Permit Mizzou Students for Justice in Palestine into Homecoming Parade
    September 19, 2025
  • New-iTunes-1400-x-1400-The-Ray-Hanania-Show-Podcast-Icon-300-x-300.jpg
  • powerpr300x300ad.jpg
  • terroristbookcover-300-x-300.jpg
  • The-Kings-Pawn-Book-300-x-300.png
  • Podcast-iTunes-Logo-Chi-City-Hall-1985.jpg
  • NEWSWIRE
  • Boats with the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza are seen moored at the small island of Koufonisi, south of the island of Crete, on September 26, 2025. (Photo: AFP/ Eleftherios Elis) Courtesy of the Committee to Protect Journalists
    CPJ calls on Israel to release journalists detained on the Global Sumud Flotilla
    October 2, 2025
  • Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition. Arab Center Washington DC Sept. 24, 2025
    Arab Center of Washington DC Fellows and affiliates analyze Palestine State recognition
    October 2, 2025
  • WRMEA Sept 2025 issue cover
    Video Interview Delinda Hanley of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
    September 27, 2025
  • ADC ArabCon Image
    ADC to issue awards for community leadsership at Convention
    September 19, 2025

Follow Ray Hanania at
Twitter
Facebook
TitkTok
BlueSky
RayHanania Columns

Click here to get information on The Ray Hanania Radio Show and its podcasts

Copyright © 2025 The Arab Daily News.

Powered by PressBook Premium theme