British journalist and documentarian Louis Theroux has described a new film on Gaza's wartime medical crisis as "a testament to something horrific", as he hosted a London premiere amplifying firsthand accounts from international doctors who worked inside the besieged enclave .
Speaking to The New Arab after a Q&A at Curzon Mayfair on Thursday evening, Theroux said Life Support — which follows British medics who volunteered in Gaza after October 2023 — was less something to "enjoy" than a "compelling and insightful" record of extreme conditions during "the genocide in Gaza".
The documentary centres on testimonies from doctors including Dr Tanya Haj Hassan and Dr Victoria Rose, who described the challenges of delivering care amid bombardmend, genocide and severe restrictions.
Theroux said he felt "privileged" to have been asked to host the Q&A with Dr Hassan and Dr Rose, calling the film "a very powerful piece of work" and encouraging audiences to watch it.
During the panel discussion, which was also attended by the film's director Daniele Rugo, Theroux asked the doctors about their motivation to volunteer in Gaza, as well as the difficulties they faced in entering the territory during active bombardment - particularly as international health workers have been increasingly denied entry by Israeli authorities.
For Dr Rose, the film also represents a rare use of extensive footage captured during her time in Gaza. She said director Daniele Rugo was the only filmmaker to work with the roughly 400 hours of material she recorded while on mission.
Dr Haj Hassan also elaborated on her experience working in Gaza, praising her Palestinian colleagues who continued treating mass casualty cases with minimal medical supplies and under the constant threat of sieges on hospitals and medical centres by the Israeli military.
She also spoke about her friend and colleague, Dr Maysara Al-Rais — a Palestinian medic killed in December 2023 whose body was only recovered on Thursday, more than two years and seven months later.
During the panel, Rugo reflected on his motivations for making the film, saying his work has consistently focused on documenting social and political realities — from the lingering violence embedded in Lebanon's post-civil war landscape in The Soil and the Sea, to the personal motivations of former fighters in About a War .
The premiere drew figures including British actor and pro-Palestine activist Khalid Abdullah and musician Roger Waters, who referenced his recent collaboration with Palestinian artist Mona Miari in reworking Comfortably Numb in response to Israel's war on Gaza.
Known for his immersive and understated interview style, Louis Theroux has built a reputation for exploring extreme beliefs, subcultures and controversial institutions.
In one of his most recent documentaries, The Settlers , he examined Israel’s settler movement in the occupied West Bank, speaking both to settlers seeking to expand into Palestinian land and to Palestinians whose lives have been shaped by their presence.