Acclaimed Palestinian actor and director Mohammad Bakri died on Wednesday at the age of 72.
He had been suffering from heart and lung problems.
With an illustrious career of over four-decade, Bakri cemented his position as one of the most influential voices in Palestinian cinema.
Renowned Palestinian Actor And Director Mohammad Bakri Passes Away At 72
Legendary actor and director Mohammad Bakri passed away on Wednesday at the age of 72, according to his family. He had been suffering from heart problems.
Summary
Legendary actor and director Mohammad Bakri passed away on Wednesday (December 24), at Galilee Medical Centre in Nahariya after suffering from heart and lung problems, hospital officials confirmed, according to a report in Al Jazeera. He was 72.
Mohammad Bakri's actor-son Sakleh confirmed the actor's death on social media. "With profound sorrow and grief, we announce the passing of our beloved father, the actor Mohammed Bakri,” he wrote on Instagram.
Bakri, a Palestinian citizen of Israel, was born in northern Israel. His funeral was held the same day in his birth town, al-Bi'neh, CNN reported.
Who was Mohammad Bakri?
Born on November 27, 1953, Bakri studied Arabic literature and theatre at Tel Aviv University. He began his career in the 1980s by performing in both Arabic and Hebrew in Palestinian and Israeli theaters and productions. He made his film debut with the 1983 film Hanna K., directed by Academy Award-winning Greek-French director Costa-Gavras, followed by Uri Barbash's 1984 Israeli film Beyond the Walls, which revolves around the story of Palestinian and Israeli prisoners put together in an Israeli jail. It earned acclamations and even bagged a nomination for an Oscar.
Death Before Dishonor, Cup Final, Haifa, The Body, The Olive Harvest, Marriage and Other Disasters, Of Kings and Prophets, American Assassin, Homeland and The Stranger, among others, are some of his notable works.
Bakri's films as a director
Apart from acting in more than 40 films, he also tried his hand in direction. His 2002 Palestinian documentary Jenin, Jenin, became a controversial film in Israel, which shows Bakri taking interviews of the residents of the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank who claim mass killing of Palestinians by Israeli forces during Operation Defensive Shield.
The controversy led to the ban of the film screening by the Israeli Film Board. Bakri appealed to lift the ban, but in 2022, the Supreme Court rejected it.
Bakri's All That's Left of You (2025), was recently shortlisted by the Academy for a Best International Feature nomination for the Oscars 2026.
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Mohammad Bakri is survived by his wife Leila and six children, including actors Saleh, Ziad and Adam.
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