Closed Zone, Gaza 2009

The director of animation for "Waltz with Bashir", Yoni Goodman, created this animted film for the Human Rights NGO "Gisha - Legal Center for Freedom of Movement". While animation may seem an unusual medium for a human rights organization, the intention was to draw attention to the ongoing closure of the Gaza Strip and empathy for the 1.5 million human beings feeling its impact most acutely through the depiction of one individual chasing a dream and finding himself without recourse.

In the accompanying text, it says: "Despite declarations that it has "disengaged" from the Gaza Strip, Israel maintains control of the Strip’s overland border crossings, territorial waters, and air space. This includes substantial, albeit indirect, control of the Rafah Crossing.

During the past 18 months, Israel tightened its closure of Gaza, almost completely restricting the passage of goods and people both to and from the Strip.

These policies punish innocent civilians with the goal of exerting pressure on the Hamas government, violating the rights of 1.5 million people who seek only to live ordinary lives – to be reunited with family, to pursue higher education, to receive quality medical treatment, and to earn a living.

The effects of the closure were particularly harsh during the military operation of Dec. 2008 - Jan. 2009. For three weeks, Gaza residents had nowhere to flee to escape the bombing.

Gisha - Legal Center for Freedom of Movement calls on the State of Israel to fully open Gaza's crossings and to allow the real victims of the closure - 1.5 million human beings - the freedom of movement necessary to realize their dreams and aspirations."

Links:
Gisha - Legal Center for Freedom of Movement
Closed Zone