Photo by Patrick Baz/El Gouna Film Festival/AFP via Getty Images
Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival has announced that its sixth edition, originally scheduled for October 27th, will be postponed indefinitely from November 2nd due to events in Gaza.
The decision came a day after the country’s Cairo Film Festival announced that its 45th edition, scheduled to run from November 15 to 24, would be postponed indefinitely, without giving reasons.
“In view of the extremely dire situation prevailing in the Gaza Strip, the management of El Gouna Film Festival has taken the conscious decision to postpone the upcoming 6th edition of the film festival,” the festival said in a statement. mentioned in.
The decision comes amid rising tensions in the Middle East following the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7 that left more than 1,400 people dead and another 199 taken hostage.
Israel has placed a strict blockade on the Gaza Strip, cutting off Israeli supplies of water, food and energy, and carrying out a bombing campaign in the densely populated Palestinian territory, killing more than 3,000 people.
El Gouna was originally scheduled to open on September 13, but the decision was made to push the date back by two weeks in the hope of continuing to host events that support local culture and dialogue. Due to the second postponement, a new date has not been announced.
El Gouna has partnered with the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development and the Egyptian Red Crescent Society to donate 5 million Egyptian pounds ($161,766) to support efforts to alleviate the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Announced.
“These measures deeply resonate with the spirit of solidarity that the organization of El Gouna Film Festival extends to the Palestinian people and the civilian population of Gaza,” the statement continued.
“Since its founding, the El Gouna Film Festival has adopted the principle of “Films for Humanity” as a core belief that strengthens the values of all humanitarian understandings. We hope that the 6th edition of the tournament will be resumed once the situation stabilizes.”
The festival, which takes place in Egypt’s namesake El Gouna resort on the Red Sea, is preparing to return after a year away.
The event was spearheaded in 2017 by resort founder Sami Sawiris and his brother, media and real estate mogul Naguib Sawiris.