Israel is increasingly relying on facial recognition to track Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and limit their passage through key checkpoints, according to a new report, and artificial intelligence-powered surveillance is being used by ethnic groups. It shows how it can be used for groups.
At a high-fenced checkpoint in Hebron, a Palestinian stands in front of a facial recognition camera before being allowed through. Once their faces are scanned, software known as Red Wolf uses a color-coded system of green, yellow, and red to determine whether the person should be released, held for questioning, or arrested. instruct the soldiers. report By Amnesty International. If the tech can’t identify someone, soldiers train the system by adding personal information to the database.
Israel has long restricted Palestinian freedom of movement, but technological advances are giving authorities powerful new tools. This is the latest example of the global spread of mass surveillance systems relying on AI to learn to identify people’s faces based on large-scale image storage.
In Hebron and East Jerusalem, technology is almost entirely Palestinian-focused, according to Amnesty’s report, demonstrating new ways to automate the management of the internal boundaries that separate Palestinian and Israeli lives. Amnesty International called the process “automated apartheid”. Israel vehemently denies running an apartheid regime.
“These databases and tools record only Palestinian data,” the report said. The report is based on reports of former Israeli soldiers and Palestinians living in the monitored areas, as well as field visits to observe the use of technology in the affected areas.
The Israeli Defense Forces, which play a central role in the occupied West Bank territories, said in a statement: We are doing security and intelligence work,” he said.
As for facial recognition, he added: “Obviously, I can’t speak to operational or intelligence capabilities.”
It is rare for governments to use facial recognition technology to specifically target specific ethnic groups. In China, a company has created an algorithm that attempts to identify minorities who pass by cameras all over the country. The Chinese government also uses facial recognition checkpoints to control and track movements of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other ethnic minorities.
Israel’s use of facial recognition at checkpoints with other surveillance systems Deployed recently. According to Amnesty International, the presence of cameras has increased in the region since the 2021 protests in Sheikh Jala, near East Jerusalem, over the eviction of a Palestinian family, and the Israeli government with facial recognition, known as Mabat 2000. video surveillance systems.
Amnesty researchers reported finding one to two cameras every 15 feet in a single walk through the area. Some are from Chinese surveillance camera maker Hikvision, while others are from Dutch manufacturer TKH Security.
TKH Security declined to comment. Hikvision did not respond to a request for comment.
Government forces also use cell phone cameras. Israeli authorities have facial recognition apps, blue wolfaccording to Breaking the Silence, an organization that supports Amnesty International and collects testimony from Israeli soldiers who worked in occupied territories, identifies Palestinians.
According to the 82-page Amnesty International report and Breaking the Silence testimony, soldiers used the app to take pictures of Palestinians during street and house searches, registering them in a central database for arrest and interrogation. I am checking whetherThe use of Blue Wolf was previously reported Washington Post.
Surveillance is part of efforts to reduce violence against Israelis. This year, Palestinian attackers have killed 19 of his Israelis. At least 100 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli security forces this year. Many are in the midst of firefights that erupted during military operations to arrest Palestinian militants.Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, after occupying it from Jordan during the Arab-Israeli War that year
Palestinian activist Issa Amro, who lives in the West Bank city of Hebron, said people were under constant surveillance. He, his friends and family are regularly stopped by soldiers to take pictures using the Blue Wolf app. Surveillance cameras line the streets and drones often fly overhead.
Amro said the Israeli military has become so dependent on automated systems that technical problems can prevent them from crossing checkpoints.
“Everything is being watched. My life is being watched. I have no privacy,” he said. “I feel like they’re following me wherever I go.”
Amro said Palestinians were angry that surveillance tools did not appear to be used to identify crimes against Palestinians by Israeli settlers.
Oli Givati, a former Israeli tank commander and now advocacy director for Breaking the Silence, said the new surveillance system began rolling in around 2020. It could move toward occupation, he said, with constant surveillance and supervision of the Palestinians.
He said facial recognition systems are “a powerful tool for not only violating privacy, but controlling it.”
