VIDEO / Hamas transforms former Gaza settlement into movie lot

From the ruins of a former Gaza Strip settlement and the site of what Hamas hopes will become a glittering movie production house, comes a new motion picture about the militant group's war with Israel.

The location was once home to the settlement of Ganei Tal, which was demolished after Israel withdrew from the coastal territory in 2005.

Last year, after Hamas seized power of the Gaza Strip, it announced plans to build what it called a media city on the former settlement. The vision spans 400 acres, with production and graphics studios, an amusement park, a zoo, hotels and an array of cafes and restaurants.

The media city's first project is a film written by non other than firebrand Hamas leader Mahmoud a-Zahar.