The Law of Armed Conflict International Humanitarian Law in War

Chapter 15 involves much of what has gone before; targeting both objects and human beings, core principles, individual status, and more. Artificial intelligence is described as applied to autonomous weapons, then as applied to LOAC’s core principles – difficult values for autonomous weapons to meet. To whom does criminal liability attach, should such weapons go awry? Designers? Builders? Users? These remain difficult LOAC issues that this chapter examines. Drones and their military use are discussed, including the American CIA’s use. Since CIA personnel are civilians, their involvement in targeting in armed conflict is unlawful, an issue discussed in this chapter. Targeted killing and its lawfulness are examined at length, as well as their relationship to assassination, an illegal act in US law. Targeted killing’s weak link, who decides which individuals should be killed, is also discussed. In the Cases and Materials section, the wrongful shooting down of an Iranian civilian airliner in 1988, that killed 290, is examined – a case study of autonomous weapons gone bad.