What are the key takeaways from this The Daily (NYT) episode?

Key insights include: **Targeting methodology:** The IDF used a system called "Where Is Daddy" that tracked Hamas members' family members via mass surveillance, waiting for signals that targets returned home to sleep. Strikes were authorized on residential buildings not because military activity occurred there, but because home locations made targets easier to find and kill.; **AI error rates in targeting:** An AI algorithm scanned nearly every phone in Gaza, rating users by behavioral similarity to known Hamas members — tracking factors like proximity to training compounds or frequent number changes. Military sources confirmed this list was used as a sole incriminator despite a known, unspecified error rate built into the system's design.; **Civilian casualty thresholds:** One intelligence officer testified that a single strike on a Hamas target was approved with the anticipated killing or injuring of up to 500 civilians. The filmmakers state multiple additional sources corroborated this figure, and they possess specific details about the strike's location and timing not yet made public.

What did Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor discuss on The Daily (NYT)?

Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Shore discuss their documentary Nazha, which features testimony from 24 anonymous IDF intelligence officers and soldiers about targeting methods used in Gaza after October 7, including AI-based surveillance systems, civilian casualty thresholds, and the psychological transformation of soldiers conducting remote warfare. Key topics include: **Targeting methodology:** The IDF used a system called "Where Is Daddy" that tracked Hamas members' family members via mass surveillance, waiting for signals that targets returned home to sleep. Strikes were authorized on residential buildings not because military activity occurred there, but because home locations made targets easier to find and kill.; **AI error rates in targeting:** An AI algorithm scanned nearly every phone in Gaza, rating users by behavioral similarity to known Hamas members — tracking factors like proximity to training compounds or frequent number changes. Military sources confirmed this list was used as a sole incriminator despite a known, unspecified error rate built into the system's design..

How long is this episode of The Daily (NYT)?

This episode is 32 minutes long. SignalCast provides an AI-generated summary so you can get the key insights in about 3 minutes.

The Daily (NYT)

The Israeli Film Directors Pushing for a Reckoning in Their Home Country

October 12, 2026

32 min episode · 2 min read

Yuval Abraham,Rachel Szor

Episode

32 min

Read time

2 min

Topics

Health & Wellness, Relationships, Design & UX

AI-Generated Summary

Published Oct 12, 2026

Key Takeaways

✓Targeting methodology: The IDF used a system called "Where Is Daddy" that tracked Hamas members' family members via mass surveillance, waiting for signals that targets returned home to sleep. Strikes were authorized on residential buildings not because military activity occurred there, but because home locations made targets easier to find and kill.
✓AI error rates in targeting: An AI algorithm scanned nearly every phone in Gaza, rating users by behavioral similarity to known Hamas members — tracking factors like proximity to training compounds or frequent number changes. Military sources confirmed this list was used as a sole incriminator despite a known, unspecified error rate built into the system's design.
✓Civilian casualty thresholds: One intelligence officer testified that a single strike on a Hamas target was approved with the anticipated killing or injuring of up to 500 civilians. The filmmakers state multiple additional sources corroborated this figure, and they possess specific details about the strike's location and timing not yet made public.
✓Psychological distance in remote warfare: Soldiers operating from Tel Aviv — only 40 miles from Gaza — conducted surveillance intimate enough to hear conversations and babies crying inside targeted homes before and after strikes. This proximity-without-presence created a psychological framework where officers gradually recognized their role in systematic civilian deaths only after extended participation.
✓Context versus justification distinction: Abraham draws a deliberate line between contextualizing violence and excusing it, applying the standard symmetrically to both October 7 and Gaza casualties. Journalists covering atrocities on either side should report factually regardless of how findings might be weaponized, because suppressing truthful reporting to manage political optics undermines the entire function of accountability journalism.

What It Covers

Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Shore discuss their documentary Nazha, which features testimony from 24 anonymous IDF intelligence officers and soldiers about targeting methods used in Gaza after October 7, including AI-based surveillance systems, civilian casualty thresholds, and the psychological transformation of soldiers conducting remote warfare.

Key Questions Answered

•Targeting methodology: The IDF used a system called "Where Is Daddy" that tracked Hamas members' family members via mass surveillance, waiting for signals that targets returned home to sleep. Strikes were authorized on residential buildings not because military activity occurred there, but because home locations made targets easier to find and kill.
•AI error rates in targeting: An AI algorithm scanned nearly every phone in Gaza, rating users by behavioral similarity to known Hamas members — tracking factors like proximity to training compounds or frequent number changes. Military sources confirmed this list was used as a sole incriminator despite a known, unspecified error rate built into the system's design.
•Civilian casualty thresholds: One intelligence officer testified that a single strike on a Hamas target was approved with the anticipated killing or injuring of up to 500 civilians. The filmmakers state multiple additional sources corroborated this figure, and they possess specific details about the strike's location and timing not yet made public.
•Psychological distance in remote warfare: Soldiers operating from Tel Aviv — only 40 miles from Gaza — conducted surveillance intimate enough to hear conversations and babies crying inside targeted homes before and after strikes. This proximity-without-presence created a psychological framework where officers gradually recognized their role in systematic civilian deaths only after extended participation.
•Context versus justification distinction: Abraham draws a deliberate line between contextualizing violence and excusing it, applying the standard symmetrically to both October 7 and Gaza casualties. Journalists covering atrocities on either side should report factually regardless of how findings might be weaponized, because suppressing truthful reporting to manage political optics undermines the entire function of accountability journalism.

Notable Moment

One intelligence officer in the film, raised on Holocaust education and unable to comprehend how perpetrators of genocide operated, told the filmmakers that after his service in Gaza he developed a clearer personal understanding of how ordinary people come to participate in mass atrocities.

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Episode Transcript

If you like YouTube, you'll love YouTube Premium. Hi. I'm Tabitha Brown. With YouTube Premium, I get ad free videos, offline downloads, and so much more. Try YouTube Premium for two months free. Trial eligibility varies. Terms apply. Cancel anytime. From The New York Times, I'm Rachel Abrams, and this is The Daily. The special jury prize goes to Naza by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. Documentary Nazha received widespread acclaim when it premiered last month at the Venice Film Festival. It won a top prize, and it got a record breaking standing ovation for twenty five minutes. But reception for the film in Israel could not be more different. The two Israeli directors are being accused of damaging Israel's reputation in the world and of betraying their own country. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he proposed legislation that could revoke the filmmaker's citizenship. All of this, despite the fact that the film has not been released in Israel. Nazha investigates the methods that the Israeli army used in Gaza in the aftermath of the Hamaslat attacks on October 7. From dark rooftops in Tel Aviv, the film features testimony from 24 anonymous military intelligence officers and soldiers. Okay. They deserve it. They discuss both the military policies that led to the killing of thousands of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and their part in it. The Israeli military has pushed back on the film, saying that it misrepresents its efforts to avoid harming civilians. And so today, we speak to the directors of Naza, Yuval Abraham, and Rachel Shore about their film and about how they're pushing for a reckoning in their home country. It's Monday, October 12. Rachel Shore, Yuval Abraham, welcome to The Daily. Thank you. Thank you. I think it's sort of fair to say that the two of you are experiencing some extremes. Your film, Nasa, got a standing ovation. Actually, it was a record breaking standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival. And at the same time, the film, even though most Israelis have not seen it because it hasn't been released there, has inspired a lot of anger back in Israel. Rachel, for example, I understand that have been protesters outside of your family's house. Yeah. So I just wanna ask you guys both just how you're doing, how you're feeling in this moment. Yeah. It's been intense. The response has been very aggressive towards the film. You know, the demonstrations next to my parents' house were calling to hang us, like a lot a lot of violence towards us. Mhmm. But I think we also feel that it at least also creates some sort of conversation about what we have done and doing in Gaza. Because for the last three years, there hasn't been any conversation about this. And just to say that we made this film in Hebrew with testimonies of the soldiers because we wanna reach the Israeli society. Yeah. I agree. I mean, that's what I try …

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