Arab-Israeli actor Rawad Azar on playing Hamas terrorist in ‘Fauda’

Arab-Israeli actor Rawad Azar said he struggled with portraying a Hamas Nukhba terrorist in the upcoming season of Fauda, an Israeli action–thriller television series that follows an undercover Israeli counterterrorism unit as it carries out operations against Palestinian militant networks.

The 37-year-old actor told Ynet News that accepting the role was difficult, as the series depicts the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.

“There were nights I did not sleep. Just thinking about what these people did is already psychological trauma for an actor, and I have to get into it and be that. It felt too close because two of my friends were kidnapped – Gali and Ziv Berman – who we worked with in "Festigal." They were returned in the latest hostage deal and I kept seeing their brother and their aunt,” Azar said.

As a citizen residing in Israel, Azar recalled Oct. 7, describing a difficult phone call with friends in the Israeli border community of Kfar Aza. One friend answered and told him, "Bro, tell everyone they are killing people here, shooting everyone," before the call was cut off.

He said he was unable to sleep for several days after the attack. At the time, he worked as part of a rapid-response security team at music festivals but had declined an offer to work at the Nova music festival because he had committed to a new play.

"The play saved my life. Maybe it is a sign God is telling me that this is my path," Azar said.

He said that Hamas terrorists did not distinguish between Jews, Christians and Muslims during the Oct. 7 massacre.

“They killed everyone. The terrorists did not say ‘this is a Jew, come…’ – they did not say anything. Arab, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist – they came to kill,” he said.

Azar said portraying a Hamas terrorist involved in the Oct. 7 attack was emotionally exhausting. “Yes, and even off set I would look left and right for police so they would not think I was actually a terrorist on my way home. When I went out to smoke a cigarette, they would leave someone with me because people were afraid,” he explained.

He added that playing such roles, including a Nukhba commander in the 2024 TV movie Rachel of Ofakim, required time to process. He said he immersed himself fully during filming but ultimately had to let go of the emotions and move forward.

Azar said he has received online threats and been labeled a "traitorous Zionist" since agreeing to play a Hamas terrorist.

“There are people who now call me a ‘traitorous Zionist’ just because I act in Israeli series. There are people who do not want to work with me. But I get a lot of responses specifically from bereaved families. They tell me, 'Thank you for doing this, you are an excellent actor,’ and I encourage them – send them kind words so they feel better. I cannot even imagine what they went through. On the other hand, there are threats – they send me curses, many unfollowed me; they threatened to come after me. But I am not afraid, let them come..."

Azar said an Iranian missile that killed four people in Haifa in April struck the building next to his home, while he and his family were sheltering nearby. He said the experience reinforced his commitment to Israel, noting that he volunteered for the Border Police and comes from a family with a history of military and police service.