In September, thousands of pagers across Lebanon erupted in a coordinated attack that appeared to be meticulously planned by Israel, showcasing the country’s advanced cyber capabilities and its integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in military operations.
Since the onset of hostilities on October 7, 2023, Israel has intensified its military actions on multiple fronts, engaging in conflicts with Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and the Houthis in Yemen.
Despite the Israeli military’s assertions of employing “precision strikes” and acquiring new technologies aimed at specifically targeting Hamas members while minimizing civilian casualties, the death toll in Gaza has tragically surpassed 41,000 civilians. This raises critical questions regarding the Israeli military’s targeting decisions and the role of advanced technology in its operations.
Racheli Dembinsky, commander of Israel’s Centre of Computers and Information Systems unit, described the offensive in Gaza as its “first digital war” at a conference titled IT for IDF, with soldiers claiming they were fighting “from inside their laptops.”
Dembinsky’s presentation featured logos from major tech companies like Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), highlighting Israel’s contracts with these firms for cloud services.
The Israeli military refers to the operation in Gaza as its “first digital war,” with personnel asserting they are fighting from their laptops.
While it has been confirmed through various reports that Israel utilizes cloud technology for extensive data storage, it is crucial to recognize that this data primarily serves to enhance the surveillance of Palestinians.
The Elusive 8200 Unit
Israel has a specialized cyber warfare and intelligence unit known as 8200, which operates under the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate. A Forbes report indicates that 90% of intelligence reports in Israel originate from this secretive unit, with its espionage efforts extending to neighbouring states.
The 8200 unit, known as Shmone Matayim in Hebrew, has gained notoriety following the pager attack in Lebanon. Its operations encompass a range of activities from signals intelligence to data mining and technological attacks, as reported by Reuters.
Manpower for the 8200 unit is typically drawn from young individuals in their late teens and early 20s, often identified through highly competitive high school programs. Many of its alumni go on to pursue careers in Israel’s tech and cybersecurity sectors.
Notably, one of the unit’s officials claimed that Israel effectively employs AI to identify Palestinian targets, specifically mentioning an AI system called Lavender that has been used to identify potential Hamas members since the conflict escalated.
Understanding Lavender
According to testimonies from Israeli officials featured in +972 Magazine, the Lavender system was utilized during the early stages of the conflict to process vast amounts of data and generate thousands of potential targets for military strikes.
Lavender is integral in target generation for the Israeli military, and it played a significant role in the “unprecedented” bombing campaign in Gaza’s initial stages.
A report by an Israeli investigative journalist reveals that Lavender assigns a score from 1 to 100 to Palestinians based on the likelihood of their affiliation with Hamas, with 100 being the most probable.
Israel employed the Lavender AI system to identify Hamas targets and execute an “unprecedented” bombing campaign in Gaza’s early conflict stages.
However, the system has also flagged individuals with only “loose connections” or even “no connections” to Hamas, including those who share a name with a known Hamas member.
The Lavender system reportedly identified 37,000 potential targets during the early phases of the conflict and was used to cross-reference intelligence sources to update military operation lists.
Reports suggest that the Israeli military has “fine-tuned” the Lavender algorithm parameters to yield potential Hamas targets, achieving an estimated “90% accuracy rate.”
Aviv Kochavi, head of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), noted that the target division was “powered by AI capabilities,” referring to Lavender, which produced extensive data translated into strike targets.
In 2021, for instance, Lavender generated 100 targets per day, whereas the military could only manage 50 targets annually without its assistance. The system analyzes data from drone footage, intercepted communications, and Palestinian movement patterns.
However, experts have raised concerns regarding AI’s effectiveness in reducing civilian harm and accurately targeting Hamas members.
Days into the conflict, Amnesty International published a report titled “Damning evidence of war crimes as Israeli attacks wipe out entire families in Gaza,” highlighting the “shocking disregard for civilian lives” exhibited by Israeli forces.
Amnesty’s findings revealed that Israeli forces destroyed entire streets of residential buildings, resulting in mass civilian casualties and the obliteration of essential infrastructure. The report concluded that while the IDF claimed to target military objectives, there was no evidence to support the presence of fighters in the attacked areas.
Gospel
Beyond Lavender, Israel reportedly employs another AI decision-support tool known as Gospel (Habsora in Hebrew). While Lavender identifies individuals, Gospel is designed to suggest buildings as potential targets.
The Israeli military utilizes the Gospel to implement its Dahiya doctrine, a strategy advocating for extensive infrastructure destruction to apply pressure on local authorities.
The IDF has confirmed the use of Gospel, stating that it enables rapid target generation through automatic tools and improves the quality of intelligence according to operational needs.
In a press release titled “A glimpse of the IDF target factory that works around the clock,” the IDF noted that with AI and updated intelligence support, the system “produces recommendations for the researcher.”
Despite targeted suggestions from these systems, an Israeli official indicated a preference for “unguided” missiles over precision strikes when targeting alleged low-ranking Hamas officials, permitting civilian casualties of 15 to 20 if deemed necessary.
One intelligence source went so far as to say they preferred not to waste expensive munitions on low-priority targets due to the associated costs and limited availability.
The “Where’s Daddy” Device
Israel’s surveillance efforts extend beyond these systems. According to Democracy Now, another tool known as “Where’s Daddy” tracks Palestinians within their homes.
Investigative journalist Yuval Abraham discussed the concept of “linking” in mass surveillance, revealing that the system is designed to associate individuals with their residences, facilitating targeted operations automatically.
The “Where’s Daddy?” AI system monitors family movements in Gaza during daylight, utilizing advanced surveillance technology to track activities within private homes.
Systems like “Where’s Daddy?” notify intelligence officers when AI-identified fighters enter homes, enabling the Israeli military to execute numerous strikes against designated targets.
Does the IDF Aim to Minimize Civilian Damage?
An Israeli military source informed the Guardian that the IDF employs “very accurate measurements” and ensures civilian evacuation before launching strikes.
However, this assertion is challenged by AI and conflict experts who remain doubtful about the efficacy of AI-based systems in preventing civilian casualties.
Moreover, the IDF itself has contradicted this claim, stating on its official website that it has broadened bombing targets to encompass non-military areas labeled as “power targets.”
Additional Israeli Projects
Project Nimbus
The $1.2 billion Project Nimbus has gained attention recently, particularly following Google’s termination of 28 workers affiliated with No Tech for Apartheid.
Awarded to Google and Amazon in 2021, this contract provides cloud services to the Israeli government, facilitating the development of military tools.
Dembinsky notes that data storage enables enhanced AI capabilities, which may include applications for target identification and live monitoring of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
In addition to storage, cloud providers offer AI capabilities and graphics processing units (GPUs), as reported by The Guardian.
Project Sirius
Project Sirius is reportedly linked to Nimbus but has yet to be contracted by any tech company. Reports indicate that the IDF seeks experts to transition military systems into the public cloud (Nimbus), with Sirius being a private, secure cloud exclusive to the IDF.
Z-Tube
Z-Tube, an application within the Israeli military’s cloud infrastructure, is reported to function similarly to YouTube, allowing soldiers access to real-time footage from various military devices in Gaza, including drones.
MapIt
Another application, “MapIt,” reportedly enables soldiers to mark live targets on a collaborative map. The Jerusalem Post has also reported on a “Waze-like” GPS system used by the Israeli military as a covert tool in Gaza.
Hunter
According to +972 Magazine, the application “Hunter” assists in identifying targets in Gaza and detecting behavioural patterns through AI.
One Israeli official described it as akin to Google Maps software but tailored for battlefield applications in Gaza, gathering threat indicators and providing actionable intelligence to users.
