US reviewing report that Israel used AI to identify bombing targets in Gaza

PHOTO CAPTION: A F-15 fighter jet flies during a graduation ceremony for Israeli Air Force pilots at Hatzerim Airbase, in southern Israel, June 29, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States was looking into a media report that the Israeli military has been using artificial intelligence to help identify bombing targets in Gaza, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told CNN on Thursday.

Kirby, in the CNN interview, said the U.S. had not verified the content of the media report published in +972 Magazine and Local Call on Wednesday. It cited Israeli intelligence officials involved in the reported program known as "Lavender."

The media report said the Israeli army had marked tens of thousands of Gazans as suspects for assassination, using the AI system with little human oversight.

The Israeli Defense Forces denies that AI was used to identify suspected extremists and targets.

"The IDF does not use an artificial intelligence system that identifies terrorist operatives or tries to predict whether a person is a terrorist. Information systems are merely tools for analysts in the target identification process," the IDF said in a statement.

The statement added that IDF directives mandate analysts to conduct independent examinations, in which they verify that the identified targets meet the relevant definitions in line with international law and Israeli guidelines.

Kirby, in the CNN interview, was also asked about reports that the Israeli security cabinet had approved the opening of the Erez crossing with Gaza to allow more humanitarian aid to enter.

Kirby said the opening of the crossing would be "welcome news" and "certainly in keeping" with what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.S. President Joe Biden in their call on Thursday.

The White House said that Biden, in the call, threatened to condition support for Israel's offensive in Gaza on its taking concrete steps to protect aid workers and civilians.

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's subsequent military assault on Hamas-governed Gaza has killed over 32,000 people, according to the local health ministry, displaced nearly all of its 2.3 million population, caused a starvation crisis, and led to genocide allegations that Israel denies.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in WashingtonEditing by Chris Reese, Leslie Adler and Sandra Maler)