General “Moshe” was the Israeli military governor in the West Bank for more than 40 years. During which, he used his capacity to loot Palestinian archaeological sites and private properties. An investigative report in the Israeli media exposes his abuse of power and triggers a governmental investigation. He denies all accusations, and since there is no hard evidence and the looted artefacts could not be found, he gets suspended as governor and appointed as warden at the Negev prison until the investigation ends.

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“Naji” is a Palestinian artist and lecturer of art history. He gets interested in the investigation against General “Moshe” and manages to locate the stolen collection in an underground cell at al Negev prison. He devises an elaborate plan, starting by getting himself arrested in al Negev prison, and ending with smuggling the looted artefacts out of the prison back into Palestinian hands. The main character “Moshe” is totally inspired by the Israeli ex Minister of defense Moshe Dayan, and every character in the film is based on actual characters with real lives.

Using filmed interviews with the real protagonists and archival material, “Theft of fire” combines together all these true elements and juxtaposes them in the same time and place to produce a dramatized story that is not real.