United Nations independent human rights experts said Monday that the Israeli military’s alleged use of artificial intelligence to select targets in Gaza has taken an "unprecedented toll on civilians, housing and services," according to U.N. reporting. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated an appeal for maximum restraint following Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel.

The experts — who the U.N. said are not U.N. staff — estimated that 60 to 70% of all homes in Gaza, and up to 84% of homes in northern Gaza, have been either fully destroyed or partially damaged. The statement said a full six months into the current military offensive more housing and civilian infrastructure had been destroyed in Gaza as a percentage compared with any recent conflict in memory.

The rights experts, who included Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, said damage to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank was estimated at about $18.5 billion — a figure the report described as roughly 97% of the combined economy — and that more than 70% of that total was to replace housing. The report said about 19% of the estimated damage relates to civilian infrastructure, including water and sanitation, power and roads.

The experts, who the U.N. characterized as independent of U.N. employment, said there was "little doubt" that the intent behind some actions went beyond the stated purpose of defeating Hamas. Those assessments were presented in the U.N. news summary of expert findings and were attributed to the group of rights experts cited by the U.N.

The U.N. news brief identified the experts’ assessments and the damage estimates but did not provide full methodological details in the summary. The U.N. news item noted that the experts are not U.N. staff and presented their findings as their assessment of the humanitarian and civilian toll.

Daniel Johnson, UN News, compiled the U.N. news brief.