FACIAL RECOGNITION SOFTWARE CAN OFTEN BE THE ONLY MEANS OF IDENTIFYING TERRORISTS

If you have been following the ongoing attacks on the border with Israel by Hamas terrorists, you may have also seen the articles, in the Arab press, about Sajid Muzher, an Palestinian medic who was killed recently near Bethlehem.  Much was made of his noncombatant, unarmed status, his reflective vest, and his purported mission, to tend to Palestinians injured and wounded while attacking the Israel Defense Forces, by throwing stones and Molotov cocktails. The medic died as the result of a gunshot wound.

The articles, which made much of what was described as the 'heroic" actions of the medic, went to great lengths to describe his death as a war crime. The truth, however, is a different matter. Images taken at the scene show the "medic" removing his reflective vest, and throwing Molotov cocktails at the IDF. His identity was confirmed by using a facial recognition software system. The pairing of image databases, and social media resources, with a facial recognition software system consistently results in positive identification of terrorist targets.