UN Secretary-General Guterres: 'Artificial intelligence should not be used to wage war'

Antonio Guterres made statements to the press at the UN headquarters.

Describing Hamas's October 7 attack as a "terrorist attack," Guterres stated that he and the UN mourn with the people of Israel, and that nothing can justify the October 7 attacks.

Guterres noted that following this, Israel's "military campaign" has brought relentless "death and destruction" to the Palestinian people in Gaza for 6 months, pointing out that more than 32 thousand civilians have been killed and more than 75 thousand people have been injured.

'WHEN THE GATES OF AID ARE CLOSED, THE GATES OF FAMINE OPEN'

Stating that the majority of these are women and children, Guterres used the expression, "Lives are shattered. International humanitarian law has been reduced to tatters."

Guterres explained that during his visit to the Rafah border, humanitarian aid workers told him they had never seen a crisis and suffering like the one in Gaza, and that he also saw trucks full of humanitarian aid waiting in long lines at the border.

The UN Secretary-General continued his remarks as follows:

"When the gates of aid are closed, the gates of famine open. Half of the population in Gaza, more than 1 million people, are facing catastrophic levels of hunger. Children are dying due to a lack of water and food. This is incomprehensible and preventable."

'ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SHOULD NOT BE USED TO WAGE WAR'

Underlining that nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people, Guterres stated that he is deeply concerned by reports of Israel using artificial intelligence in its attacks, saying, "Artificial intelligence should not be used to wage war."

Pointing out that this would lead to a high number of civilian casualties, especially in densely populated areas, Guterres warned, "No part of life and death decisions which affect entire families should be delegated to the cold calculation of algorithms."

Recalling that he has been warning against the use of artificial intelligence as a weapon for years, Guterres emphasized that artificial intelligence should be used for the good of the world instead of making accountability difficult by waging war at an industrial level.

UN Secretary-General Guterres said, "With its speed, scale and inhuman ferocity, the war in Gaza has become one of the deadliest conflicts. This applies to civilians, humanitarian aid workers, journalists, health workers and our own colleagues. 196 humanitarian aid workers have been killed, 175 of whom are our own UN staff."

Noting that most of the killed humanitarian aid workers were from the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), he emphasized, "UNRWA is the backbone of all aid efforts in Gaza..."

'THE REAL PROBLEM IS THE MILITARY PROCESS CONDUCTED BY ISRAEL'

Stating that not allowing international reporters to enter Gaza also leads to the spread of disinformation and misinformation, Guterres warned, "The information war is also increasing the trauma."

Saying that he commemorates all humanitarian aid workers who lost their lives in Gaza with respect, Guterres noted that Israel is conducting an investigation and has admitted its mistake following the killing of World Central Kitchen workers.

Guterres emphasized, "The essential problem is not who made the mistakes in the Israeli army, but the military process that allows these mistakes to be repeated again and again."

Stating that Israel must make fundamental changes in its military strategy and process to prevent the repetition of mistakes, the UN Secretary-General said, "Independent investigations and meaningful changes on the ground are needed to correct the mistakes."

Regarding the role the UN could play in an independent investigation, Guterres stated that the approval of the Israeli government is required, and that the issue is not just the killing of World Central Kitchen (WCK) workers, saying, "196 of our humanitarian aid workers have been killed. We want to know why each one of them was killed."