At the opening of the 78th Cannes Film Festival, Jury President Juliette Binoche honored 25-year-old Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassona, killed with 10 family members in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
“She should have been among us tonight,” Binoche said, noting Hassona had just learned that a documentary featuring her—Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk—was selected for Cannes.
Hassona had documented the war in Gaza, where foreign press access is banned. Her death sparked widespread outrage.
Ahead of the festival, over 380 global artists, including Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, and Ralph Fiennes, signed an open letter condemning what they called genocide in Gaza. The letter, titled “For Fatma,” accused the Israeli army of deliberately targeting civilians and journalists.
The documentary featuring Hassona will premiere in Cannes on Thursday.