Israel’s Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar announced through his office on Wednesday that the government would cease funding the Ophir Awards after “the disgraceful win of the pro-Palestinian film ‘The Sea.'”

Directed by Shai Carmeli-Pollak, the 2025 film about a Palestinian boy from Judea and Samaria and his attempts to reach the Mediterranean Sea in Tel Aviv nabbed Best Picture at Israel’s version of the Oscars, the 35th edition of which took place at a ceremony in Tel Aviv on Tuesday. The star of the drama, Muhammad Gazawi, 13, who plays the boy, won the Best Actor Ophir Award, becoming the youngest actor to win the award. Khalifa Natour won the Ophir Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role.

Having won the top prize, the film is automatically Israel’s official submission

See Full Page