“The Voice of Hind Rajab,” directed by Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania and backed by Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Fund, has been nominated in the Best Film Not in the English Language category at the 2026 BAFTA Awards, marking a significant milestone for the emotionally powerful film that has captured international attention.
A Story That Demands to Be Heard
The film tells the harrowing true story of six-year-old Hind Rajab, who was fleeing Gaza City with six family members on January 29, 2024, when their vehicle came under Israeli military fire. Hind’s desperate three-hour phone calls with the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), in which she pleaded for rescue while trapped in the car surrounded by her deceased relatives, circulated widely and caused international outrage.
The film centers on the recorded emergency calls between Hind and PRCS dispatchers, featuring an all-Palestinian cast including Saja Kilani, Motaz Malhees, Amer Hlehl, and Clara Khoury. Director Ben Hania made the deliberate choice not to have an actress portray Hind out of respect, instead using the actual audio recordings of the child’s voice.
Red Sea Fund’s Pride
Following the BAFTA nomination announcement, the Red Sea Film Foundation expressed their pride on Instagram: “The nomination reflects the strength of the creative vision behind the film and the commitment of the team who brought it to life. We’re honored to have supported this work and to see it celebrated among the year’s most distinguished international films.”
The film’s executive producers include an extraordinary lineup of global talent: Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, Jonathan Glazer, Alfonso Cuarón, Spike Lee, Michael Moore, Jon Kilik, Jemima Khan, Frank Giustra, Guillaume Rambourg, Elizabeth Woodward, Sarah Rambourg, and Sabine Getty.
Awards Season Recognition
The BAFTA nomination continues the film’s strong awards season run. “The Voice of Hind Rajab” was previously nominated for a Golden Globe in the Non-English Motion Picture category and was selected as Tunisia’s official entry for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards, where it secured an Oscar nomination.
In the Best Film Not in the English Language BAFTA category, the film competes alongside Iranian director Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” a Cannes Palme d’Or-winning political thriller, as well as “The Secret Agent,” “Sentimental Value,” and “Sirât.”
From Tragedy to Testament
Ben Hania has spoken about the urgency that drove the film’s creation. While in the middle of the Oscar campaign for her previous film “Four Daughters” and preparing for another project she had been writing for ten years, she heard Hind’s audio recording during a layover at LAX. “Everything shifted,” she said, explaining that she couldn’t continue with her daily life after hearing the child’s voice.
The 89-minute film is neither a documentary nor traditional drama, but what critics have called “a daring hybrid” that confines viewers to the emergency call center of the Red Crescent, where every pause, every breath, and every tremor in the operator’s voice reverberates with unbearable weight. Ben Hania periodically reminds audiences of the recording’s authenticity by filling the screen with audio waveforms and allowing the real dispatchers’ voices to overlap with the actors’ dialogue.
A Film as Moral Mirror
“Cinema can do better than explaining,” Ben Hania stated. “We are done explaining. Cinema’s highest function is empathy, to transport viewers into the shoes of others.”
The film’s investigation revealed that approximately 335 bullets were fired at the family’s car from close range, close enough for Israeli forces to see civilians inside. The ambulance dispatched to rescue Hind, carrying paramedics Yousef Zeino and Ahmed Al-Madhoun, was also targeted. All bodies were discovered on February 10, 2024, twelve days after the attack, following Israeli military withdrawal from the area.
Regional Impact and Global Resonance
For the Middle Eastern film industry, “The Voice of Hind Rajab” represents more than artistic achievement; it demonstrates the region’s commitment to using cinema as a tool for bearing witness and demanding accountability. The Red Sea Fund’s support of the project aligns with Saudi Arabia’s growing investment in films that address critical humanitarian issues and amplify Palestinian voices on the global stage.
The film has been screening globally, including in Tunisia, France, and the United States, and was featured at major festivals, including the Venice Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival. Hind’s story has been memorialized through various forms, including Macklemore’s protest song “Hind’s Hall” and the establishment of the Hind Rajab Foundation, which pursues legal action for those complicit in what a September 2025 UN report identified as genocide in Gaza.
The BAFTA Film Awards will take place on February 22 at London’s Royal Festival Hall, where “The Voice of Hind Rajab” will stand as both a work of art and a call to action, ensuring that Hind’s voice, and the voices of countless Palestinian children, continue to be heard.
