Mohammad Bakri, the acclaimed Palestinian actor and filmmaker, has died at 72 in northern Israel after heart and lung problems. He was best known for the 2002 documentary Jenin, Jenin, which recorded testimony after a military operation that left 52 Palestinians dead and later became the subject of legal battles and a ban upheld by Israel's Supreme Court. Bakri appeared in more than 40 films, staged a one-man play over 1,500 times worldwide, and remained a central cultural figure whose work challenged official narratives. He is survived by his wife, Leila, and six children, including actors Saleh, Ziad and Adam.
Mohammad Bakri, Iconic Palestinian Actor and Filmmaker, Dies at 72
Palestinian actor and filmmaker Mohammad Bakri challenged Israeli narratives through his work [AFP]
Mohammad Bakri, the celebrated Palestinian actor, director and cultural figure whose five-decade career made him one of the most influential voices in Palestinian cinema, has died in northern Israel. He was 72.
Hospital officials said Bakri passed away on Wednesday at the Galilee Medical Centre in Nahariya after suffering from heart and lung problems.
Bakri's death removes a towering cultural figure whose films and public stance repeatedly challenged official narratives and whose legal battles over censorship became a defining chapter in Palestinian cultural resistance.
The 72-year-old was best known for his 2002 documentary Jenin, Jenin, which collected testimonies from Palestinian residents after a major Israeli military operation in the Jenin refugee camp that resulted in the deaths of 52 Palestinians. The documentary provoked prolonged controversy in Israel, elevated Bakri's profile internationally, and continued to shape public debates about artistic freedom and historical memory.
Israeli authorities banned public screenings of the film in 2021; the Israeli Supreme Court upheld that prohibition in 2022, ruling the work defamatory. Several soldiers filed suit against Bakri; courts ultimately fined him hundreds of thousands of shekels, ordered copies of the film seized and required online links to be removed.
"I intend to appeal the verdict because it is unfair, it is neutering my truth," Bakri told the Walla News website after the ruling.
In an interview with the British Film Institute earlier in the year, Bakri reflected on his fraught relationship with the state: "I don't see Israel as my enemy … but they consider me their enemy. They see me as a traitor … for making a movie."
Career and Legacy
Born in 1953 in the Galilee village of Bi'ina, Bakri was a Palestinian citizen of Israel. He studied Arabic literature and theatre at Tel Aviv University and made a striking film debut at age 30 in Costa-Gavras's Hanna K, portraying a Palestinian refugee trying to reclaim his family's home.
His portrayal of a Palestinian prisoner in the 1984 Israeli film Beyond the Walls earned international praise and helped bring recognition to the production. Over his career he appeared in more than 40 films and directed several documentaries that examined the lives and struggles of Palestinians under occupation and within Israel.
Bakri's one-man stage performance of The Pessoptimist, adapted from Emile Habibi's novel about Palestinian identity, was staged more than 1,500 times around the world and cemented his status as a cultural icon.
He is survived by his wife, Leila, and six children, including actors Saleh, Ziad and Adam Bakri, who have followed him into cinema. His funeral was held the same day in his hometown of Bi'ina.
Bakri leaves behind a complex and influential legacy: a body of work that centered Palestinian stories and a lifetime of artistic and legal battles that ignited broader conversations about artistic freedom, memory and justice.
