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Why one Palestinian actor came back to the Israeli stage

Actor George Ibrahim appeared at the Acre Fringe Theater Festival almost 30 years after leaving the Israeli art scene and establishing the Al-Kasaba Ramallah Theater.
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At the two important cultural events that took place over the Sukkot holiday (Feast of Tabernacles), Arab artists won the big prizes. The judges of the Haifa Film Festival gave the prize for the best feature film to Palestinian director Maha Haj for her movie "Personal Affairs," and the prize for best feature debut to Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud for her film "Not Here, Not There." At the Acre Fringe Theater Festival a few days earlier, Palestinian actor George Ibrahim won the prize for best actor for his role in the play "Palestine, Year Zero."

The prizes for these Palestinian artists is a badge of honor for the organizers of these events, in light of the pressure exerted on them by Minister of Culture Miri Regev. Regev instigated a public outcry when she argued, before the Acre Festival, that the state should look into whether the play "Palestine, Year Zero," written by actor Einat Weitzman, erodes the values of the State of Israel and mocks its symbols.

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