- What: Film: The Voice of Hind Rajab
- When: 7:00pm on Friday 30 January 2026
- Additional Showings: 4:30pm on Saturday 31 January 2026 and 2:30pm on Sunday 1 February 2026
- Where: Princess Original Cinema
- Location: 6 Princess Street West, Waterloo, Ontario Map
- Tickets ($14.25): https://princesscinemas.com/movie/the-voice-of-hind-rajab
- Phone: +1‑519‑884‑5112 (Princess Cinemas)
Dear Waterloo Region friends of Palestine,
WRFP is privileged to share our first film showing of 2026 with partner, Princess Cinema.
A shattering film using only sound and humanity; screened on the 2nd anniversary of the murder of 5 year-old Hind Rajab.
The voice of Hind Rajab is the voice of Gaza itself, a cry for rescue the entire world could hear, yet no one answered.
On January 29, 2024, a five-year-old Palestinian girl named Hind Rajab and six members of her family attempted to obey an evacuation order by Israel’s military before their home in Gaza City was to be bombed. The Israeli military shelled and shot at the fleeing vehicle, killing Hind’s family and trapping the young girl in the wreckage. Hind was able to place a call to the Palestinian Red Crescent begging for help as darkness falls. She waited 3 hours for an ambulance to be granted permission by the Israeli military to come to her only to have it shelled by a tank just as it reached her. The two paramedics were murdered — as was Hind herself.
Instead of directly depicting this horrific action, the director, Ben Hania, centers the drama within the offices of the Palestinian Red Crescent in the West Bank. The film chronicles the efforts of the call centre dispatcher to maintain an open phone line with Hind while negotiating safe passage for the rescue ambulance with Israel’s uncaring military.
In a bold and inspired move, the director utilizes the actual audio of Hind’s phone calls in the film, a choice that refocuses the line between fiction and documentary, yet never feels exploitative. The film was made with the support of Hind’s mother and the real-life dispatchers who tried to coordinate the rescue effort. The Voice of Hind Rajab is heartbreaking but it is also unflinching portrayal of genocidal intent and the dangers of humanitarian aid work in middle of military fire which targets civilians and civil society. The film is a memorial to a young, innocent life extinguished by a brutal genocide.
The film will be introduced with opening remarks by Robert Massoud, founder of Zatoun.
In deference to the film’s subject it will not be followed by the usual conversation / Q&A.
Tunisia, France, USA | Kaouther Ben Hania | 89 minutes | Arabic with English subtitles
Awards and reviews:
The Voice of Hind Rajab was awarded the Grand Jury Prize at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival in 2025. It received the longest standing ovation in the festival’s history (24 minutes). Director Ben Hania said in her powerful acceptance speech: “The voice of Hind is the voice of Gaza itself, a cry for rescue the entire world could hear, yet no one answered. Her voice will continue. Her voice will continue to echo until accountability is real, until justice is served.”
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has 98% based on 49 critics reviews. The website’s consensus reads: “Incorporating real-life elements that are as difficult to witness as they are impossible to forget, The Voice of Hind Rajab is a harrowing docudrama that makes a powerful appeal to humanity.” Metacritic assigned the film a score of 85 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating “universal acclaim.”
“Not a day has gone by that I haven’t thought of Hind and the life that she was denied. Ben Hania’s film asks you to do the same: to remember her smile, her voice, her love of the sea, and her.” rogerebert.com.
The film is Tunisia’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards on March 15, 2026.
Hope to see you at the film on Friday, 30 January 2026 (extra showings on Saturday and Sunday). Please share with family and friends. Princess Cinema needs our support to encourage screening of more films on or about Palestine. Thank you.
In solidarity and peace,
Irene, Robert and WRFP
