The Film that Wasn't
Encyclopedia
The Film that Wasn't is a two-part documentary series about interrogations in Israel
and the Occupied Territories
, including the use of torture
in those interrogations. It aired on Israeli television in 1993
and 1994
. The film was directed by Ram Loevy
.
being tortured during the First Intifada
. He broached the idea with Yoseph Barel, who headed Israeli Television at the time, but was quickly rejected. The political climate in the country was not ripe for such a controversial film.
Things changed rapidly in 1992, when the left-leaning
Alignment Party
under Yitzhak Rabin
defeated the Likud Party in the elections
. Soon after the elections, Loevy was informed that his proposal had been approved. He immediately brought veteran producer Liora Amir-Barmatz on board, and began investigating the contentious topic.
It was at the point that Loevy and Amir-Barmatz decided that the series should consist of two distinct episodes. The first would focus on interrogations within the Green Line)
, mainly as committed by the Israeli police
. The second episode would focus on torture in the West Bank
and Gaza Strip
, particularly as used by the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) and the Shabak (General Security Service) against Palestinian prisoners. They had planned for the two episodes to be aired over two consecutive weeks in order to highlight the intrinsic relationship between the ways torture was used in both geographic regions. Each episode would focus on many different cases of torture in order to underscore that torture was a common phenomenon in Israel, especially during the Second Intifada, in response to a spate of what was considered to be terrorist
activities. Finally, they planned to be very clear that the cases they examined were real, and not some propaganda
tool designed to malign Israel
. All testimonies would be corroborated by multiple sources, and the body that conducted the torture would be offered a platform to respond to the charges. At the same time, they insisted that they would not accept generalities or whitewashing of the cases in lieu of an explanation.
At this time, they also decided to call the series The Film that Wasn't. In a review of the series that appeared in the newspaper Maariv
, journalist Meir Schnitzer explained the name as follows:
Both episodes followed a similar format. Victims of torture by the Israeli authorities would give their testimonies, sometimes anonymously. The authorities' responses, often detailed but twisted, would then be presented silently with in a slide on the screen.
names, indicating who the victims of torture were. Techniques described and recreated by the victims included:
In at least one instance, the beatings were so severe that a victim, Hasan Zubeida, was left in a catatonic state
ever since after fifteen days of interrogation. A statement by the Shin Bet, which appeared on a slide following shots of the crippled Zubeida, says that, "It has not been proven that his catatonia resulted from the interrogation.
once described as the "banality of evil
" in her 1963 book Eichmann in Jerusalem
.
This anonymous torturer was a soldier in the reserves who served in the military police. Though he was originally supposed to provide security for the military interrogators, he was eventually seduced into participating in their activities, watching as they poured "something like acid
" into the prisoners open wounds and beating them himself until his own hands hurt from clutching his truncheon
so tightly and his ears rang with the screams of his victims.
, the new Director General of the Israel Broadcasting Authority
(IBA), was determined to postpone the second episode even before the first episode was screened. He insisted that the police, the army, and the Shin Bet all be afforded an opportunity to respond to the charges again. This had always been the filmmakers' intention. Although the police and the Shin Bet did responded to each of the testimonies, the IDF refused to respond to the account of the anonymous reservist who had participated in the torture.
Loevy and his crew had hoped to obtain the responses of the military torturers themselves, and were even prepared to mask their identities. When this was rejected by the IDF, the film crew compromised and was prepared to accept a written statement instead. Yet even this was not forthcoming. Meanwhile, the "anonymous torturer" wanted to confront the IDF with what happened, and was prepared to testify before the Military Advocate General
, provided that he would be promised anonymity. The army refused to grant him this.
This was followed by several months of intense negotiations between the IBA and the IDF. Loevy wanted to air the film and announce that the military had refused to comment. He argued that it was the IBA's responsibility, and that they would not provide the same exemption for any other group. Kirschenbaum refused, most likely on the grounds that the army is not just "another group." It is ultimately responsible for Israel's security. After many long months, the IDF finally relented. The anonymous reservist gave a deposition to a representative of the Military Advocate's office, and a few days later the IDF responded. The response included a promise to conduct an official investigation into the allegations. With this in hand, episode 2 was aired on 14 June 2004, almost eight months after the first episode.
, for his lifetime of contributions to Israeli television. The next day, the headline on the front page of Yediot Ahronot newspaper read, "Israel Prize Winner Making Film about the Secret Service's 'Torture Chambers.'"
The use of torture had long been a hot-button issue in Israel, and in 1987, an official commission
headed by the former President of the Supreme Court
Moshe Landau
ruled that "moderate physical pressure" might sometimes be necessary as an interrogation tool. While that ruling gained considerable attention, the precise definition of "moderate physical pressure" appeared in a second report that remained secret. In other words, while severe forms of torture, such as waterboarding
, were likely illegal under the Landau Commission's ruling, "moderate" physical and psychological pressure could be applied to detainees. To those who supported the use of torture to obtain vital information, it appeared as if Loevy was undermining even that. In his introductory remarks to a 2006 retrospective on Loevy's work, Aner Preminger noted that:
Loevy, however, adopted a more modest approach to his film, saddened by what he terms the apathy with which his film was received. On the other hand, he is eager to point out that the very film that took on the most powerful forces in the Israeli establishment—the metaphorical "sacred cows" of national security and the groups such as the IDF and the Shin Bet responsible for security—was funded by a state-run television channel.
Nevertheless, at a 2009 symposium in Tel Aviv, he also noted that the IDF has yet to fulfill its promise to the "anonymous torturer" that it would conduct an official investigation into his charges.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and the Occupied Territories
Israeli-occupied territories
The Israeli-occupied territories are the territories which have been designated as occupied territory by the United Nations and other international organizations, governments and others to refer to the territory seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 from Egypt, Jordan, and Syria...
, including the use of torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
in those interrogations. It aired on Israeli television in 1993
1993 in television
The year 1993 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1993.For the American TV schedule, see: 1993-94 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:-1950s:...
and 1994
1994 in television
The year 1994 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1994.For the American TV schedule, see: 1994-95 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:-Miniseries:...
. The film was directed by Ram Loevy
Ram Loevy
Ram Loevy is an award-winning Israeli television director and screenwriter since the medium first began broadcasting in the country in 1968...
.
The making of the film
According to Loevy he was inspired to create the film in 1991, after reading the frequent accounts in the press of PalestiniansPalestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
being tortured during the First Intifada
First Intifada
The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories. The uprising began in the Jabalia refugee camp and quickly spread throughout Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem....
. He broached the idea with Yoseph Barel, who headed Israeli Television at the time, but was quickly rejected. The political climate in the country was not ripe for such a controversial film.
Things changed rapidly in 1992, when the left-leaning
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
Alignment Party
Alignment (political party)
The Alignment was an alliance of the major left-wing parties in Israel between the 1960s and 1990s. It was established in 1965 as an alliance of Mapai and Ahdut HaAvoda but was dissolved three years later when the two parties and Rafi formally merged into the Israeli Labor Party...
under Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin
' was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77 and 1992 until his assassination in 1995....
defeated the Likud Party in the elections
Israeli legislative election, 1992
Elections for the thirteenth Knesset were held in Israel on 23 June 1992. The result was a victory for the left, led by Yitzhak Rabin's Labor Party, though their win was at least partially due to several small right-wing parties narrowly failing to cross the electoral threshold and thus effectively...
. Soon after the elections, Loevy was informed that his proposal had been approved. He immediately brought veteran producer Liora Amir-Barmatz on board, and began investigating the contentious topic.
It was at the point that Loevy and Amir-Barmatz decided that the series should consist of two distinct episodes. The first would focus on interrogations within the Green Line)
Green Line (Israel)
Green Line refers to the demarcation lines set out in the 1949 Armistice Agreements between Israel and its neighbours after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...
, mainly as committed by the Israeli police
Israel Police
The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...
. The second episode would focus on torture in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
and Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
, particularly as used by the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) and the Shabak (General Security Service) against Palestinian prisoners. They had planned for the two episodes to be aired over two consecutive weeks in order to highlight the intrinsic relationship between the ways torture was used in both geographic regions. Each episode would focus on many different cases of torture in order to underscore that torture was a common phenomenon in Israel, especially during the Second Intifada, in response to a spate of what was considered to be terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
activities. Finally, they planned to be very clear that the cases they examined were real, and not some propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
tool designed to malign Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. All testimonies would be corroborated by multiple sources, and the body that conducted the torture would be offered a platform to respond to the charges. At the same time, they insisted that they would not accept generalities or whitewashing of the cases in lieu of an explanation.
At this time, they also decided to call the series The Film that Wasn't. In a review of the series that appeared in the newspaper Maariv
Maariv
Maariv is a Hebrew language daily newspaper published in Israel. It is second in sales after Yedioth Ahronoth and third in readership after Yedioth Ahronoth and Israel HaYom. In a TGI survey comparing the last half of 2009 with the same period in 2008, Maariv saw its market share fall slightly...
, journalist Meir Schnitzer explained the name as follows:
The meaning of The Film that Wasn't is that everything said in it by the witnesses falls into the category of "never-was-and-never-happened," and all of it is nothing more than an eraserEraserAn eraser or rubber is an article of stationery that is used for rubbing out pencil markings. Erasers have a rubbery consistency and are often white or pink, although modern materials allow them to be made in any color. Many pencils are equipped with an eraser on one end...
that does a murderous task on the public's awareness. With the sophistication of an experienced director, Loevy knows that things can be shouted out in the negative too—through silence.
Both episodes followed a similar format. Victims of torture by the Israeli authorities would give their testimonies, sometimes anonymously. The authorities' responses, often detailed but twisted, would then be presented silently with in a slide on the screen.
The methods and the victims
The film covered a wide range of techniques, both physical and mental, that were used to extract information. Many were known by ArabicArabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
names, indicating who the victims of torture were. Techniques described and recreated by the victims included:
- Zinzana, or severe isolation,
- Shabah, or being hogtieHogtieThe hogtie is a method of tying the limbs together, rendering the subject immobile and helpless. Originally, it was applied to pigs and other young four-legged animals.- Details :...
d or bound in painful positions, - Hazana, in which the victim is locked in a closet until he defecatesDefecationDefecation is the final act of digestion by which organisms eliminate solid, semisolid or liquid waste material from the digestive tract via the anus. Waves of muscular contraction known as peristalsis in the walls of the colon move fecal matter through the digestive tract towards the rectum...
in his clothing, - Thalaja, or isolation in an icy room,
- The Banana, a form of being hogtieHogtieThe hogtie is a method of tying the limbs together, rendering the subject immobile and helpless. Originally, it was applied to pigs and other young four-legged animals.- Details :...
d, ankles to wrists, while lying on one's back on a narrow bench, - Sexual abuse,
- Beatings.
In at least one instance, the beatings were so severe that a victim, Hasan Zubeida, was left in a catatonic state
Catatonia
Catatonia is a state of neurogenic motor immobility, and behavioral abnormality manifested by stupor. It was first described in 1874: Die Katatonie oder das Spannungsirresein ....
ever since after fifteen days of interrogation. A statement by the Shin Bet, which appeared on a slide following shots of the crippled Zubeida, says that, "It has not been proven that his catatonia resulted from the interrogation.
The anonymous torturer
One of the most chilling aspects of the film is not the evidence of the victims, but the anonymous testimony of one of the perpetrators, whose identity was hidden and whose voice was altered to avoid retribution. To some, his testimony was reminiscent of what Hannah ArendtHannah Arendt
Hannah Arendt was a German American political theorist. She has often been described as a philosopher, although she refused that label on the grounds that philosophy is concerned with "man in the singular." She described herself instead as a political theorist because her work centers on the fact...
once described as the "banality of evil
Banality of Evil
Banality of evil is a phrase coined by Hannah Arendt and incorporated in the title of her 1963 work Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil. It describes the thesis that the great evils in history generally, and the Holocaust in particular, were not executed by fanatics or...
" in her 1963 book Eichmann in Jerusalem
Eichmann in Jerusalem
Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil is a book written by political theorist Hannah Arendt, originally published in 1963...
.
This anonymous torturer was a soldier in the reserves who served in the military police. Though he was originally supposed to provide security for the military interrogators, he was eventually seduced into participating in their activities, watching as they poured "something like acid
Acid
An acid is a substance which reacts with a base. Commonly, acids can be identified as tasting sour, reacting with metals such as calcium, and bases like sodium carbonate. Aqueous acids have a pH of less than 7, where an acid of lower pH is typically stronger, and turn blue litmus paper red...
" into the prisoners open wounds and beating them himself until his own hands hurt from clutching his truncheon
Baton (law enforcement)
A truncheon or baton is essentially a club of less than arm's length made of wood, plastic, or metal...
so tightly and his ears rang with the screams of his victims.
The screening of the film
The first episode of The Film that Wasn't aired on 28 October 1993, and the second episode was scheduled to air one week later, on November 4. It did not. While the film was approved by most of the senior officials at Israel Television, Moti KirschenbaumMoti Kirschenbaum
-Biography:Kirschenbaum was born in Kfar Saba in 1939. He studied in Pardes Hanna Agricultural High School. He served in the parachuted Nahal unit of the IDF. From 1962 to 1968 he studied film and television in UCLA....
, the new Director General of the Israel Broadcasting Authority
Israel Broadcasting Authority
Israel Broadcasting Authority is Israel's state broadcasting network.It grew out of the radio station Kol Yisrael, which made its first broadcast as an independent station on . The name of the organisation operating Kol Yisrael was changed to Israel Broadcasting Service in 1951...
(IBA), was determined to postpone the second episode even before the first episode was screened. He insisted that the police, the army, and the Shin Bet all be afforded an opportunity to respond to the charges again. This had always been the filmmakers' intention. Although the police and the Shin Bet did responded to each of the testimonies, the IDF refused to respond to the account of the anonymous reservist who had participated in the torture.
Loevy and his crew had hoped to obtain the responses of the military torturers themselves, and were even prepared to mask their identities. When this was rejected by the IDF, the film crew compromised and was prepared to accept a written statement instead. Yet even this was not forthcoming. Meanwhile, the "anonymous torturer" wanted to confront the IDF with what happened, and was prepared to testify before the Military Advocate General
Military Advocate General
The Military Advocate General assists the Israel Defense Forces in imposing rules of conduct through legal advice, legal instruction, maintaining the mechanisms for military prosecution and legal defense, and fulfilling special legal tasks...
, provided that he would be promised anonymity. The army refused to grant him this.
This was followed by several months of intense negotiations between the IBA and the IDF. Loevy wanted to air the film and announce that the military had refused to comment. He argued that it was the IBA's responsibility, and that they would not provide the same exemption for any other group. Kirschenbaum refused, most likely on the grounds that the army is not just "another group." It is ultimately responsible for Israel's security. After many long months, the IDF finally relented. The anonymous reservist gave a deposition to a representative of the Military Advocate's office, and a few days later the IDF responded. The response included a promise to conduct an official investigation into the allegations. With this in hand, episode 2 was aired on 14 June 2004, almost eight months after the first episode.
The response to the film
Ironically, The Film that Wasn't evoked a more impassioned response when it was being made than after it was aired. During the making of the film, in 1993, Loevy was awarded Israel's highest honor, the Israel PrizeIsrael Prize
The Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
, for his lifetime of contributions to Israeli television. The next day, the headline on the front page of Yediot Ahronot newspaper read, "Israel Prize Winner Making Film about the Secret Service's 'Torture Chambers.'"
The use of torture had long been a hot-button issue in Israel, and in 1987, an official commission
Landau Commission
The Landau Commission was a three-man Commission set up by the Israeli Government in 1987 following a long-running scandal over the deaths of two Palestinian prisoners in custody and the wrongful conviction of a Circassian IDF officer...
headed by the former President of the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Israel
The Supreme Court is at the head of the court system and highest judicial instance in Israel. The Supreme Court sits in Jerusalem.The area of its jurisdiction is all of Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. A ruling of the Supreme Court is binding upon every court, other than the Supreme...
Moshe Landau
Moshe Landau
Moshe Landau was an Israeli jurist. He was the fifth President of the Supreme Court of Israel.-Biography:Landau was born in Danzig, Germany to Dr. Isaac Landau and Betty née Eisenstädt...
ruled that "moderate physical pressure" might sometimes be necessary as an interrogation tool. While that ruling gained considerable attention, the precise definition of "moderate physical pressure" appeared in a second report that remained secret. In other words, while severe forms of torture, such as waterboarding
Waterboarding
Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water is poured over the face of an immobilized captive, thus causing the individual to experience the sensation of drowning...
, were likely illegal under the Landau Commission's ruling, "moderate" physical and psychological pressure could be applied to detainees. To those who supported the use of torture to obtain vital information, it appeared as if Loevy was undermining even that. In his introductory remarks to a 2006 retrospective on Loevy's work, Aner Preminger noted that:
The Israeli establishment had no choice but to embrace Loevy and grant him the Israel Prize in 1993, but even this did not succeed in silencing his penetrating voice and lightening his uncompromising perspective on Israeli society. When the Israeli left was in a state of euphoria and convinced that it had taken over the government, Ram Loevy made a subversive film for Israeli television, daring for the first time to touch on and shake up the taboo of silence surrounding the torture of security detainees by the Shin Bet.
Loevy, however, adopted a more modest approach to his film, saddened by what he terms the apathy with which his film was received. On the other hand, he is eager to point out that the very film that took on the most powerful forces in the Israeli establishment—the metaphorical "sacred cows" of national security and the groups such as the IDF and the Shin Bet responsible for security—was funded by a state-run television channel.
Looking back on the entire incident, I now find it fascinating and somehow uplifting that the public broadcasting network in Israel agreed to finance and broadcast a film that investigated the horrors inflicted by Israeli forces on the Palestinians. I wonder how many other countries would have agreed to do that.
Nevertheless, at a 2009 symposium in Tel Aviv, he also noted that the IDF has yet to fulfill its promise to the "anonymous torturer" that it would conduct an official investigation into his charges.