Recent news of the Prime Minister of Israel refusal to cooperate with Iran peace plan and images of the destruction of Gaza and the attacks on Lebanon brought some research to mind on International Humanitarian Law and the apparent refusal of the IDF to use AI as a guide to the proportional and discriminate conduct of war that this technology can facilitate.
The admonition of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew to extend the restriction on retribution proclaimed in the Book of Leviticus as “an eye for an eye” was hopefully made possible with modern AI supported intelligent surveillance and targeting systems that have been proven to be able to locate, identify, and select a weapon response that “neutralizes the target” with minimal "collateral" death and destruction.
Trump criticizes Israel's tactics in Lebanon, says it is killing civilians
Humeyra Pamuk, writing for Reuters, reports that US President Donald Trump has chastised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the death of civilians due to the tactics of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Lebanon.
Summary in Reuters Article:
Trump said Israel need not bomb entire apartment buildings to target Hezbollah militants
Rebuke comes amid tensions between Trump and PM Netanyahu over Lebanon, Iran deal
White House said Trump still has a strong relationship with Netanyahu (Pamuk, 2026)
A White House official said:
"There has been no greater friend to Israel and a fighter for peace than President Trump...Americans and our allies around the world are already safer for the United States and Israel’s bold actions to deny the Iranian regime the ability to develop a nuclear weapon,"
There is no indication that Trump's comments would translate into meaningful policy that would force Israel to rethink its military tactics in a way to ensure greater protection for civilians.
Israel has faced sharp criticism from other countries, particularly during its assault on Gaza that has killed 73,000 people, most of them civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Israel says it never targets non-combatants and says militant groups such as Palestinian Hamas and Hezbollah regularly use civilians as human shields. (Pamuk, 2026)
Some other background is contained in these earlier posts.
Israel and Accountability in Gaza
AI IDF Gaza IHL
Responsible AI in Gaza against Hamas
AI Distinction Proportionality IHL in Gaza
The nations that have signed the United States “Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of Artificial Intelligence” express the principle that military forces must enhance their implementation of international humanitarian law and to improve the protection of civilians and civilian objects in armed conflict. UN experts have welcomed the suspension of arms transfers to Israel by Belgium, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and the Japanese company Itochu Corporation. The European Union also recently discouraged arms exports to Israel. The post Arms exports to Israel notes that Canada’s Minister of Foreign, Affairs, Mélanie Joly, is reported as being increasingly concerned about the role of Canada in supplying arms to Israel.
References
Pamuk, H. (2026, June 16). Trump criticizes Israel's tactics in Lebanon, says it is killing civilians. Reuters. Retrieved June 18, 2026, from https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-criticizes-israels-tactics-lebanon-says-it-is-killing-civilians-2026-06-16/
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