trailer trash

I recently caught the first instalment of UK soap star and author Ross Kemp’s new Middle East series. Ross Kemp in Gaza was an insightful look into life in one of the most politically fraught areas of the world, a conflict that has spanned almost half a century, and although frequently covered in the news, has become “white noise” to many of us.

Some other videos covering the Israel–Palestine conflict worth watching are by Swiss journalist Jürg Da Vaz in the Gaza Strip. Like video diaries with only a few interviews involved, Da Vaz captures the lives and mundainities of average Palestinians, going about their business in the Gaza Strip. Newspapers and press aside, what captured me the most was the environment of the young Gaza children, growing up in bullet–ridden streets with punitive restrictions.

Friends in conflict in ' Welcome to Hebron'

Welcome to Hebron is a shocking and honest look at the hidden world of those living their every day lives under occupation. Multi award–winning and filmed over three years, the film follows Leila, a smart and opinionated Palestinian schoolgirl who refuses to be a victim. To Israeli settlers and soldiers Leila is nothing more than a target, but like many she dreams of change, and some day bringing peace to Hebron. The film is made up of interviews with those on both sides of the conflict: through this director Terj Carlsson is determined to bring us intimacy, capturing the kind of confrontations that are often censored or hidden from the world’s press.