Several confrontations broke out before the screening of a film depicting Hamas’ attacks on Israel in Los Angeles on Wednesday evening.
The film “Bearing Witness” is a compilation of extremely graphic raw footage captured in southern Israel during the October 7 attacks. Some of the footage reportedly comes from cameras worn by Hamas gunmen as they carried out massacres. The 43-minute film was shown at the Museum of Tolerance in LA on Wednesday evening, while there was a heavy police presence in and around the museum to ensure security.
Wonder Woman actress and former IDF soldier Gal Gadot was rumored to have been involved in organizing the screening, but was not present at the event itself, according to , although her Israeli film producer husband Jaron Varsano was present.
Dozens of people gathered outside the museum during the screening and at one point violence broke out, according to ABC 7. The broadcaster said “multiple” fights broke out and several people were pepper-sprayed as police formed a skirmish line in an attempt to control the situation.
The Los Angeles Times reported that at least one person was arrested by law enforcement. The newspaper added that the fighting took place in a gas station across from the museum and that a woman was punched in the face by a man who then fled as police tried to stop the violence. A Times photographer’s glasses were broken, the report continued.
“We cannot allow current global tensions to lead to this unacceptable violence in our city,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a post on X about the fighting. “This is a time of immense pain and suffering for thousands of Angelenos. We have to stick together.”
According to , the screening location was revealed by a media outlet prior to the event, leading to threats being made against the museum in the days leading up to the film’s screening. The outlet said when the film was shown, some people cried and others walked out before it was over, unable to continue watching the carnage. The film reportedly includes footage of Israelis being shot and beheaded with shovels, as well as audio recordings of calls from Hamas fighters to relatives in Gaza in which they brag about what they did.
The IDF held a screening of the film for international journalists at a military base in Tel Aviv last month. Israeli officials said at the time it was necessary to show the footage to counter Hamas’ “lies” about the Oct. 7 attacks, which they described as a “Holocaust denial-like phenomenon.”
According to Israeli figures, more than 1,400 people were killed in the Hamas shooting spree in Israel. In response, Israel has unleashed an unprecedented wave of attacks in Gaza. The Hamas-run Health Ministry says more than 10,500 Palestinians have been killed in the besieged enclave as a result of Israeli operations.