Promises

Moishe wants to be the first religious military commander-in-chief. Taking us on a tour of his neighbourhood in the occupied West Bank, he points out an army firing range which backs on to a Palestinian district. If they miss the targets, well, maybe there will be one less Palestinian to worry about, he smirks. Of course he's just a kid, but he knows Israel belongs to the Jews, and he can prove it: what better evidence than the word of God? Then there's Sanabel, a young Palestinian girl whose father has been imprisoned without charge for the past two years. This award-winning documentary explores the political faultlines tearing up Israel by focusing on the experiences of seven children, aged 9 to 13. The kids are Palestinian and Jewish, religious and secular, and live within 20 minutes of each other - yet in this deeply segregated society it's only when the film-makers intervene that there's any interaction between them. Shot between 1997 and the summer of 2000, this clear, cogent documentary is a useful primer on the roots of the conflict, and, despite its explicit liberal-humanist agenda, ultimately a depressing warning sign of more trouble ahead. It's impossible not to be moved by the injustices inflicted on the Palestinians.