Venice Film Festival Refuses to Fly Palestinian Flag, Sparking a Second Open Letter From Activists
The Venice Film Festival will not fly the Palestinian flag from the Palazzo del Cinema, and a collective called Venice4Palestine is not letting the decision stand without a fight.
The festival's artistic director, Alberto Barbera, told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica in a filmed interview on Wednesday that the flag could not go up because the Biennale — the foundation that runs the festival — is only allowed to fly the flags of states officially recognized by Italy. "The Palestinian flag won't be there because the Biennale is only allowed to fly the flags of states recognized by Italy," Barbera said. "Unfortunately, Palestine is not yet a state, even if we'd like it to be and we're fighting for that." (Deadline)
The festival has a long-standing tradition: it flies the flags of every director with a film in the official selection from flagpoles on the Palazzo del Cinema, the festival's main venue on the Venice Lido. This year, two Palestinian directors have films in the lineup — Ahmed Hassouna's Citizen Osama and Muayad Alayan's Conversation with the Sea — which prompted Venice4Palestine's first open letter, published on the eve of the festival, calling for the flag to be raised in their recognition.
On Thursday morning, the collective responded to Barbera's refusal with a second open letter, entitled "Fly the Palestinian flag at the Lido." In it, Venice4Palestine argued that Barbera's pretext "conveniently overlooked" that Palestine is recognized as a state by roughly 150 countries, including 35 European states such as France, Spain, and Great Britain. The group also pointed out that Italy itself has implicitly recognized Palestine by long recognizing the Palestinian ambassador to Italy, Her Excellency Mona Abuamara. (Deadline)
Barbera pushed back against any suggestion that the festival is sidestepping the Palestinian question. He told La Repubblica that the Biennale's attitude was "extremely evident" in its programming, pointing to last year's selection of Kaouther Ben Hania's The Voice of Hind Rajab, which reconstructed the events leading to the killing of five-year-old Hind Rajab by Israeli forces in Gaza in January 2024. This year, Barbera said, the festival includes four films tackling the Palestinian question from different points of view. Alongside the two Palestinian-directed features, the selection includes Israeli director Amos Gitai's The Road to Jericho and a late competition addition, Naza, by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor — the Israeli directors behind the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land. (Deadline)
The flag dispute is not the first time the festival has found itself pressed on Palestine. Pro-Palestine activists staged a protest outside the festival grounds hours before this year's opening ceremony to denounce Israel's actions in Gaza (Anadolu Agency via Facebook). Venice4Palestine's own website notes that a year ago, thousands of people answered its call to place Palestine in the spotlight at the festival (Venice4Palestine).
The clash sits at the intersection of protocol and politics. The Biennale operates under Italian state rules on diplomatic recognition, and Barbera has framed the flag refusal as a legal constraint rather than a choice. Venice4Palestine counters that the constraint is thinner than it looks, given the breadth of international recognition and Italy's own diplomatic relationship with a Palestinian ambassador.
Neither side has indicated a compromise is in the works. The festival runs through September 12.
