TechnologyThe US Has a Plan to Document Human Rights...

The US Has a Plan to Document Human Rights Violations in Ukraine


The US government has said it will fund data-gathering from the conflict in Ukraine, in a move that, in addition to laying the groundwork for prosecuting war crimes, would share critical, real time data with humanitarian organizations.

The newly established Conflict Observatory will use open source investigation techniques (OSINT) and satellite imagery to monitor the conflict in Ukraine and collect evidence of possible war crimes. Outside organizations and international investigators would be able access the resulting database, a US State Department spokesperson confirmed in an email.

Partners for the Conflict Observatory include Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab, the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative, artificial intelligence company PlanetScape Ai, and Esri, a geographic information systems company, according to a State Department [press release](https://www.state.gov/promoting-accountability-for-war-crimes-and-other-atrocities-in-ukraine/). The Observatory will have access to commercial satellite data and imagery from the US government, which will “allow civil society groups to move at faster pace, towards a speed once reserved for US intelligence,” says Nathaniel Raymond, a lecturer at the Jackson School of Global Affairs at Yale University and a coleader the Humanitarian Research Lab.

Raymond himself is no stranger to using technology to investigate conflicts and crises. More than a decade ago he was the director of operations for the Satellite Sentinel Project, cofounded by actor George Clooney, which used satellite imagery to monitor the conflict in South Sudan, and documented human rights abuses. It was a first-of-a kind initiative, but would be too costly and resource-intensive for other organizations to replicate.

“This kind of work is very labor intensive,” says Alexa Koenig, the executive director at the Human Rights Center at UC Berkeley School of Law. “I think on the money and capacity side, we’re at a moment where a lot of these organizations do need to be thinking about the information environment in which they’re working. Open source information can be invaluable at the preliminary investigation stage, as you’re planning either humanitarian relief or to conduct a legal investigation.”

None of the data the Observatory will use and disseminate is classified; the satellite imagery will be taken from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s (NGA) commercial contracts with private companies. But having access to many types of data in one place, rather than spread across many different entities, and the ability to analyze it, would make it powerful. Although the Observatory would be using publicly available data, it does not plan to make its data open source, unlike many other humanitarian projects, according to Raymond.

“The level of detail and how fast, in some cases, imagery data can be collected means that it could have value for those seeking to target civilians, and protected infrastructure like hospitals and shelters,” he says.

Raymond is particularly aware of these kinds of risks. While at Satellite Sentinel, a report that the group published led, he believes, to the kidnapping of a group of Chinese road workers by the South Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLM-North). Though the image had been de-identified by removing longitude and latitude, Raymond says locals could have recognized the terrain and identified where the road crew was.



Original Source Link

Latest News

Teens learn a new conspiracy theory every week on social media yet most schools aren’t teaching media literacy

Teens who use social media see conspiracy theories come across their feed at least once per week, according...

Ethereum Breaking $3,100 Is ‘Just The Beginning’

Este artículo también está disponible en español. Analysts see that Ethereum has the potential to reach a new all-time...

COP29 begins in Baku, Biden visits Peru and Reeves makes first Mansion House speech

This article is an on-site version of our The Week Ahead newsletter. Subscribers can sign up here to...

8 Best Flashlights and Headlamps (2024), Tested and Reviewed

The two most important metrics to look for when shopping for a flashlight are the batteries and the...

Philly DA Warns Anyone Planning to Play Militia ‘F Around and Find Out’

Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner has an election message for the MAGA plotting to play militia to intimidate voters...

Must Read

Donald Trump asks arch protectionist Robert Lighthizer to run US trade policy

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour...

Western Officials Suspect Russia Was Behind Plot To Put Incendiary Packages On Cargo Planes

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Western security officials suspect...
- Advertisement -

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you