A US charity plans to use artificial intelligence to monitor classroom conversations in Gaza and flag speech it considers 'hateful' or 'inciting', raising concerns about surveillance, children's privacy and freedom of expression.
Gaza Children Village, which operates schools providing education and other support to Palestinian children, intends to record classroom discussions and use an AI-powered system to identify potentially problematic language. Alerts would be sent to the charity's founder, who could then contact teachers to discuss what had been said.
The proposal has drawn criticism from Palestinian advocates, people connected to the charity and at least one partner organisation, with concerns that monitoring could undermine trust between teachers and pupils in a territory already deeply affected by war.
The plans were detailed by the charity's founder, Dr David Hasan, during a webinar with humanitarian groups in September, according to the Associated Press. It remains unclear when the monitoring will begin, precisely which words or statements the system will flag, and whether teachers, pupils and their families have been informed.
AI Could Monitor Classroom Conversations for 'Hateful' Language
The proposed system is intended to help the charity ensure teachers follow a curriculum that it says promotes peace and tolerance.
Hasan has described the educational programme as an effort to 'de-radicalise' education in Gaza. The lessons are largely based on the Palestinian Authority's curriculum, with changes intended to remove language that the charity believes glorifies violence or encourages antisemitic or anti-Israel views.
Under the monitoring plan, classroom conversations would be analysed by AI for language categorised as antisemitic, hateful or inciting. If the system detects potentially problematic speech, it would alert Hasan, who said he could contact the teacher to understand the context and provide feedback.
Hasan said recordings would be stored for 72 hours. The technology had reportedly been tested, with plans to deploy it in dozens of classrooms.
However, the charity has not publicly clarified the full criteria the AI system would use to flag speech or how its assessments would be reviewed. Those details matter because a statement made by a child in a classroom could require cultural, historical or emotional context that an automated system might not reliably interpret.
Gaza Classroom Surveillance Raises Privacy and Safety Concerns
The proposal comes as Palestinians in Gaza face heightened fears about surveillance following years of war and the use of advanced technology by the Israeli military.
The Associated Press reported that the Israeli military has used AI to analyse intercepted communications and identify suspicious speech, including information used to select targets for strikes. That history has intensified concerns about the possible misuse of recorded classroom conversations, although there is no indication that Gaza Children Village intends to share its recordings with anyone else.
Amjad Iraqi, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group covering Israel and the Palestinian territories, described the climate of surveillance as deeply unsettling for Palestinians.
The concerns extend beyond the possibility of recordings being shared. Teachers and pupils may also feel unable to speak openly if they believe their words are being monitored and could trigger an investigation or disciplinary response.
An official at an aid organisation partnering with Gaza Children Village said the proposed use of AI to monitor people's words opened a 'Pandora's box'. The official, who spoke anonymously to the Associated Press, said the plan could prompt the organisation to reconsider its relationship with the charity.
Charity Board Member Questions Whether Monitoring Could Silence Pupils
Bishara Bahbah, a Palestinian American political activist who sits on Gaza Children Village's board, said he had not been aware of the monitoring plans and that they had not been discussed with the board.
Bahbah distinguished between using cameras to assess classroom performance and using surveillance to restrict what teachers and pupils can say.
He warned that monitoring could undermine the free exchange of ideas in classrooms, adding that getting more children back into education should be a priority when so few schools remain functional in Gaza.
A staff member at Gaza Children Village also told the Associated Press that some teachers and employees were worried about potential questioning by Hamas over the curriculum or felt uncomfortable working for an organisation supported by Israeli aid groups.
Six current and former teachers at the charity's Academies of Hope declined to comment to the news agency.
The concerns highlight the difficult balance between the charity's stated goal of promoting peaceful education and the potential consequences of monitoring speech in a setting where teachers and pupils may already feel vulnerable.
Can AI Reliably Identify 'Hateful' Speech?
The proposal raises a broader question about the limits of automated speech monitoring, particularly when the technology is used to assess children discussing a conflict that has affected their families and communities.
AI systems can be designed to identify certain words and patterns, but determining whether a statement is hateful, threatening, political or part of a discussion about historical events can require more than keyword detection.
For example, a pupil referring to violence experienced by their family may use emotionally charged language without intending to encourage further violence. A system that flags language without adequately understanding the context could risk misclassifying what was said.
The charity has not publicly disclosed enough technical information to establish how its proposed system would address such situations, how often its alerts might be wrong or whether teachers could challenge an assessment.
These unanswered questions are particularly significant because the system would involve recording children, potentially including pupils who have lost relatives during the war and may be receiving psychological support through the charity's schools.
Gaza's Education Crisis Adds to the Debate
Gaza Children Village says its Academies of Hope provide meals, medical assistance and psychological care as well as education. The charity says its schools in central and southern Gaza serve thousands of children, many of whom have lost parents or other relatives.
The wider education crisis is severe. UNICEF estimates that hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza are out of school and that most school buildings have been damaged or destroyed during the war.
The dispute over AI monitoring also reflects a wider disagreement about who should shape Gaza's education system and how teaching materials should be reviewed. Palestinian rights groups have criticised the charity's approach, arguing that education should remain accountable to local Palestinian institutions and established international agencies.
The charity has said its curriculum is intended to promote peace and tolerance. However, Hasan declined to comment to the Associated Press or provide examples of the changes made to teaching materials.
