Israeli AI-Driven Targeting in Gaza Exposed in Venice Documentary
A documentary premiered at Venice Film Festival featuring anonymous testimonies from Israeli military and intelligence officials describing the use of AI-driven targeting systems in Gaza that identified targets for airstrikes, with acknowledged significant civilian casualties. The film, titled 'NAZA' after an Israeli military term for predicted civilian deaths, documents how mass surveillance was combined with AI technology to select targets.
What happened
A documentary titled 'NAZA' premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 10, 2026, directed by Israeli journalists Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. The film features anonymous testimonies from 24 members of the Israeli Defense Forces and intelligence services describing the use of AI-driven targeting systems in Gaza.
According to the documentary, Israeli intelligence used AI systems fed with data from Gaza's telecommunications network, which Israel controls, to identify targets for airstrikes. The witnesses describe AI being used to select buildings for bombing based on identified targets, with predictions of civilian casualties.
Reported impact
Testimony in the documentary indicates that for each primary target eliminated, multiple civilian casualties result, with some attacks predicted to cause hundreds of civilian deaths. One witness describes the experience as 'like a video game' because operations are conducted remotely, while another states 'you feel a little like God'.
The documentary title 'NAZA' refers to a military euphemism used by Israeli intelligence to denote the estimated number of civilians likely to die in a bombing. The film documents how mass surveillance in Gaza was combined with AI technology to identify targets for strikes.
Index analysis
The witnesses in the documentary describe AI systems making targeting decisions with apparent autonomy. Specific examples cited include airstrikes targeting Hamas operatives resulting in deaths of families with multiple children, and building destructions resulting in up to 50 civilian deaths.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.