Algorithmic Impunity and the Accountability Crisis in International Humanitarian Law Under AI-Driven Autonomous Weapons Systems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37253/conescintech.v6i1.12750Keywords:
Algorithmic Impunity, International Humanitarian Law, Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS), Accountability CrisisAbstract
This study aims to (1) construct the concept of algorithmic impunity as a new analytical category within International Humanitarian Law (IHL), addressing the legal accountability vacuum produced by the deployment of AI-driven Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) in contemporary military operations. (2) Specifically, it examines the failure of international criminal accountability doctrines to establish mens rea for harms caused by autonomous AI systems,and evaluates the adequacy of UN General Assembly Resolution 79/239 (2024) as a normative response to this crisis. A juridical-normative approach is employed through doctrinal and comparative legal analysis. Primary materials include IHL instruments, CCW GGE LAWS documents, relevant UN resolutions (Res. 79/62 and 79/239), and applicable international jurisprudence. The analysis examines three core IHL principles, distinction, proportionality, and precaution, in the context of LAWS operating without meaningful human oversight. The research identifies a structural accountability crisis in the current IHL regime stemming from three conditions: (1) causal anonymity between algorithmic decisions and lethal consequences; (2) the disintegration of traditional command chains due to machine autonomy; (2) and the absence of a binding legal instrument specifically governing LAWS. The study concludes that adequate normative response requires developing an algorithmic impunity doctrine within an additional IHL protocol, moving beyond meaningful human control toward an AI life-cycle accountability framework.
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