BBC Lines Up New Norma Percy Israel-Palestine Docuseries

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BBC Two has lined up a new docuseries from filmmaker Norma Percy, Israel and the Palestinians: The Road to 7th October (w.t.), to premiere in March.

The series will chronicle the decisions that have shaped the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the past two decades and the failed attempts to broker peace, leading up to the events of October 7, 2023. It will feature firsthand interviews with those present at key moments, including world leaders and their closest advisers.

This includes U.S. Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and Condoleezza Rice; U.S. President Barack Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel; Former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair; Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert; Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni; Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad; the late Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat; and previously unseen extracts from an interview from the late Ariel Sharon. The docuseries also features a rare interview with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh weeks before he was killed.

The series opens in 2003 with the surprise decision by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to withdraw from the Gaza Strip. It goes on to tell the inside story of Hamas’s takeover of Gaza and how its leaders cemented power and launched the traumatic October 7 assault on Israel’s citizens.

Percy’s previous two series for the BBC, The Fifty Years War (1998) and Elusive Peace (2005) covered crucial moments from the foundation of Israel in 1948 to the 2005 Gaza withdrawal. Both are available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

The first episode of the new series will broadcast on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer in early March.

“We have followed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for over two decades,” Percy said. “This series builds on our previous work and includes new, untold stories from key political and diplomatic figures who were directly involved in shaping the events that brought us to the present day. The first program shows how Ariel Sharon’s decision to leave Gaza–ostensibly the most generous move ever made by an Israeli leader–led to a split amongst Palestinians which has lasted until today.”

“Norma Percy is unrivaled in her ability to get access to the most powerful players,” noted Jo Carr, head of BBC Current Affairs. “Her documentaries bring clarity and insight to the historic events from the people who were in the room when key decisions were made, offering unique insight to viewers.”

Tim Stirzaker, director of Brook Lapping, added, “This series is about events that changed history; it’s also about the relationships between those who took the most important and consequential decisions. When you hear direct from presidents, prime ministers and their top advisers, you get a real sense of the dynamics involved at the highest levels of politics.”