Film about Hamas attack triggers protest outside cinema in East Finchley

Protesters and counter-protesters gathered in north London for the screening of a documentary about the Hamas attack on October 7.

Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian supporters protested outside the Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley on Thursday against the screening of “Supernova: The Music Festival Massacre,” which focuses on the victims and survivors of the Hamas attack on the Nova Festival.

Pro-Palestinian groups called for the screening to be cancelled during the protest, while crowds waving Israeli flags organized a counter-protest.

The cinema, which was daubed with red graffiti ahead of the screening, said it was “not taking sides” and that as an independent venue it had to “uphold freedom of expression”.

The Metropolitan Police said it was investigating the vandalism as a possible “hate crime.” No arrests have been made yet.

The film was shown as part of the Israeli film festival Seret, which took place in London from May 16 to 23.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said Section 14 restrictions were in place during the protest.

“The demonstrators were able to continue protesting, but had to retreat to designated areas. This was for the safety of everyone involved,” police said.

“Pro-Palestinian protesters left the area and officials remained on site to minimize congestion and keep roads open.”

Images of the cinema shared on social media appeared to show graffiti on the entrance door reading: “Say no to artwashing.”

The graffiti has now been removed.

More than £10,000 was raised for the cinema to cover the costs of cleaning and any repairs.

A spokesman for Phoenix Cinema said: “We believe that an independent cinema should respect freedom of expression and want to show difficult content.”

“For the sake of clarity, we would also support a difficult Palestinian film because, as a charity, we do not take sides.

“Some of our audience may not agree with this screening, but we expect others will be very supportive and would have been dismayed if we had refused to host (Israeli International Film Festival) Seret this year.”