‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ actor Motaz Malhees misses Oscars due to Trump’s Palestinian ban

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Kaouther Ben Hania, a Tunisian filmmaker who directed ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’, revealed that the lead actor of the 2025 film is not present at the Oscars 2026 because of a travel ban imposed by Donald Trump.

Motaz Malhees missed the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 15, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. As per Hania, who spoke with The Hollywood Reporter, “My lead actor is not here. It’s not because he does not want to be here. It’s because he’s a Palestinian and we know that there’s a ban decided by Donald Trump to ban Palestinians from entering the United States."

Kaouther Ben Hania says lead actor absent

“So, we are here without our lead actor celebrating art. So you see this red carpet is not disconnected from the rest of the world,” the 48-year-old added. Her film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best International Feature representing Tunisia.

Hania’s statement came after Malhees, who played a vital role in ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’, also shared his heartbreak via social media on Thursday.

On Instagram, he wrote, “Three days left to the Oscars. Our film ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ is nominated for an Academy Award. I had the honor of playing one of the lead roles in a story the world needed to hear.”

Motaz Malhees says travel ban cannot silence him

“But I will not be there. I am not allowed to enter the United States because of my Palestinian citizenship. It hurts.”

The 34-year-old actor, however, added that one can “block a passport. You cannot block a voice. I am Palestinian, and I stand with pride and dignity.”

“My spirit will be with the ‘Voice of Hind Rajab’ that night. Good luck to all of you. Our story is bigger than any barrier, and it will be heard,” Malhees asserted in his post.

‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ is a docudrama about the killing of Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old Palestinian girl, by the Israel Defense Forces. The movie shows how the Red Crescent responded after receiving a call from the girl, who was trapped in a car in war-torn Gaza.