Kamel El Basha

Kamel El Basha or Kamel el-Basha (; born ) is an actor, theatre director, teacher, and translator. He is best known for his performance in the film The Insult, for which he won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor.

Early life Kamel El Basha was born around 1962 then a thriving village in Palestine known as al-Maliha, now a suburb in south-western Jerusalem, Israel. He recalls being five years old and running from his home with his family during the 1967 war, when Syrian, Jordanian, and Egyptian armies attack Israel.

El Basha came to international attention for his role as Palestinian refugee Yasser Abdallah Salameh in the 2017 film The Insult by the Lebanese film director Ziad Doueiri. and El Kamal won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his performance. Also in 2023, he played safecracker Youssef Mizouni in the eight-part British heist television series Culprits.

He plays a major role in the 2024 Australian TV series House of Gods as Sheikh Mohammad, airing on ABC TV aind ABC iview. The series has been selected to be screened in the French competition Series Mania, while El Basha was awarded with the Best Actor prize. This is an international competition dedicated to television series held in Lille since 2018. Sheikh Mohammad is an Iraqi imam, and the series focuses on relationships with his family, and among the Iraqi expatriate community living in Australia.

Other activities El Basha was artistic director of the Palestinian National Theater in Jerusalem from 2007 to 2011, and the artistic director of Quds Art from 2012.

Awards 2017: Volpi Cup for Best Actor in the 74th Venice International Film Festival, for The Insult 2025: Palestine 36 2026: Sohab El Ard as Ibrahim (TV) 2026: Conversation with the Sea

Others 2014: Al Helm: Martin Luther King in Palestine (documentary), writer and director 2016 : Defying my disability (documentary), executive producer

Selected theatre credits Directing Suquut al Qastal Ness Kiis Rasas Al Qamees al Masruq Madeenat al Sa'aada Ward wa Yasmeen Al Arees Sahra Maqdisiyyah

Acting Al Qamees al Masruq Al Aydi al Qazira Al Zeer Salem Mawta bila Qubuur Hajar al Tahqeeq