HURGHADA, Egypt, Dec 22 (NNN-MENA) – Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival (GFF), has featured a special programme dedicated to Palestinian films, which helped the audiences gain a deeper understanding of the grave situation in the occupied territory.
The sixth edition of GFF, which was postponed due to the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, was held from Dec 14 to Dec 21, in Egypt’s Red Sea resort town of El Gouna.
The administration of the GFF said in a statement that, the “Window on Palestine” programme, which was organised in collaboration with the Palestine Film Institute, aimed to shed light on the current situation and “inhumane conditions in Gaza.”
Palestinian-Syrian actress, Nisreen Tafish, said, it was great that the GFF supports humanitarian issues, adding that, this is a role that films should always play.
“A number of Palestinian films screened here have previously won international awards … this contributes to conveying the Palestinian cause and its message in a beautiful and wonderful way to the Western world,” Tafish said.
She added that, awareness is growing in the West of the importance of telling the truth about the conflict in Palestine through films.
Israel has been launching relentless airstrikes and a ground offensive in Gaza to retaliate against a surprise attack staged by Hamas on southern Israel on Oct 7.
The Israeli strikes have so far killed more than 20,000 Palestinians and destroyed most of the infrastructure of the Palestinian seaside enclave.
“I highly appreciate the GFF for shedding light on the Palestinian issue and Palestinian art,” Palestinian filmmaker, Rashid Masharawi said, praising the diverse topics that the films covered.
The GFF, which started in 2017, with “cinema for humanity” as its permanent cause to support, has been exerting maximum efforts to support various causes, including refugees, women empowerment and sustainability.– NNN-MENA
