Netanyahu Seeks Investigation of Witnesses in Israeli Army Documentary

The move to pursue legal action against anonymous military witnesses marks a test of how Israel's government handles internal dissent documented on film.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has called for an investigation into witnesses who appeared in a documentary film accusing the Israeli army of committing crimes in Gaza, according to Le Monde. The prime minister's office is also considering civil legal proceedings against participants in the film.

The documentary, titled "Naza," was directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. In it, 24 members of the Israeli military and intelligence services provide testimony anonymously, according to Le Monde. The witnesses describe actions they allege constitute crimes carried out during Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Netanyahu's office did not, in available reporting, specify which laws it believes the witnesses may have violated. What laws would apply, and whether any testimony constituted a breach of military secrecy or other statutory obligations, remains unknown pending a formal legal determination by Israeli authorities.

Yuval Abraham is an Israeli filmmaker and journalist previously known for international recognition of his work, including a speech at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2024 that drew public attention to the Gaza conflict. Rachel Szor is an Israeli cinematographer and director. Neither filmmaker has been named as a target of the investigation described in Le Monde's reporting.

The decision to investigate anonymous military witnesses rather than the filmmakers directly raises procedural questions about how Israeli authorities plan to identify individuals who gave testimony without using their names. The process by which anonymized sources in a documentary could be identified and prosecuted has not been detailed in available public statements from Netanyahu's office.

The documentary's core claim, that Israeli military and intelligence personnel witnessed or participated in criminal acts in Gaza, sits within a broader international legal debate. The International Court of Justice is separately examining allegations related to Israeli military conduct in Gaza under proceedings brought by South Africa beginning in late 2023. That case remains active as of the date of this report.

Israel has consistently maintained that its military operates according to international law and conducts internal investigations into alleged violations. The Israeli Defense Forces have not, in publicly available statements reviewed for this report, addressed the specific allegations raised by the 24 witnesses in "Naza."

The use of legal pressure against individuals who provide testimony to journalists or filmmakers about alleged state conduct is a pattern documented in multiple countries. In Israel's context, military censorship law grants authorities the ability to restrict publication of certain security-related information, though the application of that law to retrospective documentary testimony has not, to this publication's knowledge, been extensively litigated.

Media freedom organizations including Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists have in prior years documented concerns about legal actions taken against journalists covering the Gaza conflict, though neither organization had, at time of publication, issued a specific statement on the "Naza" investigation as described by Le Monde.

The witnesses in the film gave testimony anonymously, a standard practice in documentary journalism designed to allow individuals to speak without personal risk. Whether Israeli law provides any protection for such anonymous testimony in the context of military conduct disclosures is a question that would likely be central to any prosecution attempt.

The Israeli government's position on the documentary is part of a wider effort to contest the narrative that Israeli forces have engaged in systematic wrongdoing in Gaza. Netanyahu has repeatedly stated publicly that Israel is acting in lawful self-defense following the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, which Israeli government figures and the United States State Department have described as killing approximately 1,200 people in Israel. The Gaza Ministry of Health, which operates under Hamas administration, has reported over 40,000 Palestinian deaths in the conflict as of mid-2025, figures cited by United Nations agencies.