For La  Revue d'études palestinienne

Le 29 novembre 1947, l'assemblée générale des Nations Unies votait le plan de partage de la Palestine qui proposait aux Palestiniens 47% du territoire de la Palestine du mandat britannique. Aujourd'hui, toutes les initiatives de paix sont bien en dessous et depuis les accords d'Oslo de 1993 qui prévoyaient la constitution d'un Etat palestinien dans un délai de cinq ans, le mieux que puissent espérer les Palestiniens est de récupérer 22% de leur territoire d'origine.

The third edition of Middle East: What Can Cinema Do? has reached its close, successfully  bringing together a varied audience, from activist to just curious, to see the films and be part of the daily conferences that have contributed to the growing importance of this Parisian biennial event.

The Iron Wall opened Middle East: What Can Cinema Do? Screened in tandem with our opening debate - the Israeli settlement of Palestinian land, we were honoured to receive Leila Shahid (EU Palestinian Delgate), Michel Warschawski (Israeli peace activist, journalist and  director of the AIC) and Dominique Vidal (Le Monde Diplomatique)  for this kick-off, along with director Mohammed Alatar.

From Anguish to Hope

We have thus reached the third edition of what has become an anticipated biennale meeting and we would so much like to boast a real change towards peace in the Israel-Palestine situation. Alas, it seems we are further away than ever from it and the abscess that poisons all civilian and political life in the Middle East has only spread, igniting new centres of death and destruction.

Paris, a city of peace and freedom, knows how much cinema, a universal art rich in diversity, is a powerful vector of dialogue and mutual knowledge.

Exactly 60 years ago on November 29, 1947, the United Nations' General Assembly divided Palestine into two states, one Jewish, the other Arab. But the war of 1948 had a different outcome: only the state of Israel was to come into existence; it broke into parcels the territory of the stillborn Arab state with Jordan and Egypt, and 800,000 Palestinians went into exile.

Within two editions, "Middle-East : What Can Cinema Do" has asserted itself as an important cinematographic meeting in Ile de France (greater Paris). After the cinema of Israel and Palestine with the conflict as the backdrop, this third edition opens new windows and expresses new hopes of closeness and peace for other Middle Eastern countries.

The first two editions of the festival What Can Cinema Do? took place in 2003 and 2005 at the cinema Les 3 Luxembourg and focused on the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Your contribution to our event can make a difference.

 Meet the members of the organising committee.