Tribute to Mohammed Bakri: Celebrated Palestinian actor dies at 72

Dubai: Renowned Palestinian actor and director Mohammed Bakri has died at the age of 72, his family announced on Wednesday. Bakri had been suffering from heart-related health issues. His funeral was held later the same day in his hometown of Bi’ina in northern Israel.

“With profound sorrow and deep grief, we announce the passing of our beloved father, the actor Mohammed Bakri,” his son Saleh Bakri, also an actor, wrote in a post on Instagram.

A Palestinian citizen of Israel, Bakri began his artistic career in the 1980s, performing in both Arabic and Hebrew across Palestinian and Israeli theatre and film productions. He made his cinematic debut in Hanna K., directed by the Academy Award-winning Greek-French filmmaker Costa-Gavras.

Bakri went on to appear in dozens of films, including the acclaimed 1984 Israeli production Beyond the Walls, directed by Uri Barbash. The film, which portrays Palestinian and Israeli prisoners held together in an Israeli jail, received widespread recognition in Israel and was nominated for an Academy Award.

In addition to acting, Bakri also worked as a director. His most notable work behind the camera was the 2002 documentary “Jenin, Jenin”, which featured interviews with residents of the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The film documented allegations of widespread destruction and civilian deaths during Israel’s Operation Defensive Shield.

The documentary sparked significant controversy in Israel and was subsequently banned from public screening by the Israeli Film Board. The legal battle surrounding the ban reached the Supreme Court, which in 2022 rejected Bakri’s appeal to lift the restriction.