The MintPress podcast, "The Watchdog, " hosted by British-Iraqi hip hop artist Lowkey, closely examines organizations about which it is in the public interest to know - including intelligence, lobby and special interest groups influencing policies that infringe on free speech and target dissent. The Watchdog goes against the grain by casting a light on stories largely ignored by the mainstream, corporate media.
Joining Lowkey on this special episode of "The Watchdog" is the creator of the Netflix film, "Farha", a movie the Israeli government has gone to great lengths to prevent from reaching the masses.
Darin J. Sallam begins the episode with a breakdown of her award-winning film...
It's the story of a 14-year-old Palestinian girl whose dream is to get an education in the city...the dream changes from getting an education in the city to surviving in a room that she was locked up in by her father to protect her life when the Haganah soldiers invaded her village."
The Haganah, a Zionist military organization, was heavily involved in the Nakba, a systematic campaign between 1947 and 1949 to ethnically cleanse Palestine of its indigenous peoples. During this period, at least 750,000 Palestinians were forcefully expelled by such militia forces. Over 70 massacres were committed, more than 15,000 Palestinians were killed, and 520 villages were destroyed.
Lowkey draws a comparison between his music and the film, both of which have been smeared by Israeli lobbyists as inciting violence. He asks Sallam how she responds to the Israeli government figures claiming the film is a form of incitement.
She responds that,
It is based on true events and this killing scene that they're very upset about is just a drop in the ocean...it's nothing compared to what happened...they have a problem watching the truth...They can't silence our voices and they [Israel lobby] try to just stop the film of streaming on Netflix...we will not accept this, and we will keep speaking our side of the narrative and make our voices reach everywhere."
Sallam also describes how she was able to get her creation on Netflix.
After the film screening in Toronto, the film started touring festivals around Europe. It's literally like everywhere now. In Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Australia, everywhere, and then after a year and a half, we met with Netflix, and they acquired the film to stream it worldwide. I think this is one of the things that made them [Israeli officials] very angry..."
Darin Sallam is a Jordanian writer and director. holds an MFA from the Red Sea Institute for Cinematic Arts (RSICA) and has published a number of award-winning films, including "Still Alive", "The Dark Outside" and "The Parrot".
Watch the whole interview here, exclusively at MintPress News.
Lowkey is a British-Iraqi hip-hop artist, academic and political campaigner. As a musician, he has collaborated with the Arctic Monkeys, Wretch 32, Immortal Technique and Akala. He is a patron of Stop The War Coalition, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the Racial Justice Network and The Peace and Justice Project, founded by Jeremy Corbyn. He has spoken and performed on platforms from the Oxford Union to the Royal Albert Hall and Glastonbury. His latest album, Soundtrack To The Struggle 2, featured Noam Chomsky and Frankie Boyle and has been streamed millions of times.