On Saturday, 7 prisoners escaped Guayaquilâs Litoral prisonâbarely making news after days of emergency military deployment. As a handful of police guarded the outside of the prison and the normally full market sat empty, the scene reflected a dyanmic @malu_ramahi and I heard repeated often: that the violence had begun a while ago and only now the state was beginning to respond. Neglect at this prison had led to brawls that left hundreds of incarcerated men dead through cartel violence. It was only after gang members took over a police station and took more than 100 prison guards hostage across the country that the government responded. But even still, cops and residents we met expressed skepticism about the ability to actually derail the cartel growth.
From the short doc @omar21java and I made in Umm El Fahm in 2021 & 2022. As this genocidal campaign in Gaza and the West Bank drags on with horrifying, devastating consequences, this Israeli aggression carries a distinct difference for Palestinians inside '48. New laws and policing rules are stifling speech and protest, Palestinians with Israeli citizenship have been arrested for liking and sharing news stories, have had banks cut off their credit cards, been stripped of their enrollment in university. The stifling of speech is stronger than ever.
A few years ago I began work on a film that has become a long-term effort, documenting the challenges human rights workers face in Palestine. That film hasnât yet been released, but Iâm still hopeful we can find a home for it someday soon. Either way, I find myself thinking about Ubai Aboudi, pictured in these photos, and other human rights workers like him who have been challenging Israelâs apartheid systems for years, at great risk to themselves and their families. There is so much resilience and strength in these stories that predate 2023.
Hebron is a Palestinian city in the West Bank with an Israeli settlement at its center. Entire sections of the city are closed off for Palestinians.
Back in May, for @theintercept , I spent a day with Breaking the Silence â a nonprofit of former Israeli soldiers that aims to highlight the injustice of occupation â as they brought a group of tourists in town for Eurovision to Hebron.
