The Israeli occupation forces have been installing an automatic weapon, developed by Smart Shooter, at a heavily-trafficked checkpoint in Al-Khalil, West Bank, in September. 

The occupation forces claim that the device is only capable of firing sponge-tipped bullets, with hopes by the IOF that the bullets will be used to test approved crowd dispersal methods. 

Palestinians, following the development of this weapon, are now being used as guinea pigs for the occupation authorities to market Israeli military technology that is "field-tested" to be sold abroad. 

The weapon was installed in Al-Shuhada Street, which was once an area buzzing with life and vibrance. Now, the street is an occupation stronghold, after Israeli settlers shut down the road in 1994, following the massacre of 29 worshippers at the Ibrahimi mosque carried out by Baruch Goldstein, an Israeli-American settler. It was then declared a closed military area. 

The area is home to 200 families, with 300 families passing through the checkpoint every day, according to Issa Amro, a resident in Al-Khalil. 

Amro argues that the area is not a security threat: “There is no security need to install this automatic weapon there,” he told MintPress News. “There is no violence. The checkpoint is well-protected with many fences, doors, and gates.”

Though the weapon will not shoot live fire, sponge-tipped bullets have been proven deadly. Numerous Palestinians have been severely injured by the weapon, with some losing their eyes in the violence, in addition to others being killed.

Amro passes by the checkpoint every day - he worries about the weapon's machine failure. “I’m afraid every time I pass [through this checkpoint] that this weapon is pointing at me, pointing at children, or women,” he said. “People are terrified.”

Palestinians... as training objects 

“Israeli security companies use Palestinians as training objects,” Amro said, adding that the IOF practice "their new technology [on Palestinians] to check if it’s working or not, then they sell it to other countries.”

According to Smart Shooter's website, the company uses artificial intelligence, machine learning and computer vision to develop traditional weapons into smart weapons.

"One shot, one hit" is the company's slogan. This poses as an indication of the precision of the aim, with smart weapons capable of shooting moving objects with precision.

Smart Shooter holds a number of contracts with foreign militaries, including the Israeli occupation forces, the US Department of Defense, the US Marine Corps, the Dutch army, the Indian navy, the German army and more. The company's tech was also selected for a NATO Defense Against Terrorism Program of Work drill in 2020. Singapore's army, in addition, is testing the weapon. 

The weapon, in addition, was displayed in a number of conferences around the world including the United Arab Emirates, Greece, England, France, Spain, Germany, and Poland. Australia and the Czech Republic will also see the weapon in their exhibitions later on. 

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The company is also recruiting marketing directors to lead its businesses in India and Central Asia, which entails that it will also be expanding its tentacles on the continent.

Founded by Michal Mor and Avshalom Ehrlich, Smart Shooter's executive management is made up of Israeli weapons industry veterans. The founders have both previously worked at Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. 

The vice president of business development, Abraham Mazor, and the vice president of research and development, Sharone Aloni, have worked at Elbit systems and the Israeli Air Force previously. 

In addition, Scott Thompson, the company's vice president and general manager of US operations, also worked in Israel Aerospace Industries. 

Nitsan Alon, who has been previously serving as Major General in the Israeli army for over 30 years, is also on the board of directors.

Surveillance 

About 1,000 cameras have been installed in Al-Quds, the West Bank, to detect objects with 10% of the cameras connected to data-analyzing servers.

The cameras which use artificial intelligence are used to identify Palestinians without checking IDs. Blue Wolf, an Israeli espionage technology, collects images of Palestinians' faces through smartphone technology. 

The smartphone app comes from Wolf Pack, a more extensive project designed to profile every Palestinian in the West Bank based on their family history, education and 'security rating.'

Blue Wolf captures photos of Palestinians' faces and matches them to a database of images so extensive that one former occupation soldier described it as the army's secret "Facebook for Palestinians."

A colony built on mass surveillance and military violence, in which an occupier has to kill to retain a piece of land, is not a land the occupier can maintain its grip on. Palestinians are increasingly becoming victims of the weapons industry, which continues to develop more advanced ways to commit systemic murder.