Legal Review of Weapons

This theme explores the legal review of weapons and emerging technologies in warfare, focusing on compliance with international humanitarian law, ethical considerations, and the implications of autonomous and AI-driven weapon systems.

From hackers to tech companies: IHL and the involvement of civilians in ICT activities in armed conflict

November 4, 2025 10 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Communications / Conduct of Hostilities / Generating Respect for IHL / IHL / Law and Conflict / New Technologies / Scope of application Tilman Rodenhäuser, Samit D’Cunha, Laurent Gisel, Anna Rosalie Greipl & Marco Roscini

Picture a potential future armed conflict: missiles and drones crowding the skies, uncrewed vehicles rolling ...

‘Constant care’ must be taken to address bias in military AI

August 28, 2025 11 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Artificial intelligence in military decision-making / Generating Respect for IHL / IHL / New Technologies / Special Themes Laura Bruun & Marta Bo

As many states, especially those with large and resourceful militaries, are exploring the potential of ...

Warfare at the speed of thought: can brain-computer interfaces comply with IHL?

August 21, 2025 13 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Conduct of Hostilities / Generating Respect for IHL / IHL / New Technologies / Weapons Anna M. Gielas

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are no longer speculative technologies of future warfare – they are being ...

Loitering munitions: flagging an urgent need for legally binding rules for autonomy in weapon systems

June 29, 2023 10 mins read Analysis / Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Autonomous Weapons / New Technologies / Weapons Ingvild Bode & Tom F.A. Watts

Earlier this month, a viral story alleged that a US Air Force simulation took place ...

Three lessons on the regulation of autonomous weapons systems to ensure accountability for violations of IHL

March 2, 2023 11 mins read Analysis / Autonomous Weapons / Humanitarian Action / Law and Conflict / New Technologies Vincent Boulanin & Marta Bo

States have agreed on the principle that machines cannot be held accountable for violations of ...

Shifting the narrative: not weapons, but technologies of warfare

January 20, 2022 12 mins read Analysis / Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Humanitarian Action / Law and Conflict / New Technologies / Technology in Humanitarian Action / Weapons Klaudia Klonowska

Debates concerning the regulation of choices made by States in conducting hostilities are often limited ...

Legal regulation of AI weapons under international humanitarian law: A Chinese perspective

May 2, 2019 9 mins read Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Law and Conflict / The most read blog posts in 2019 / Weapons Qiang Li & Dan Xie

Arguably, international humanitarian law (IHL) evolves with the development of emerging technologies. The history of ...

Safety net or tangled web: Legal reviews of AI in weapons and war-fighting

April 18, 2019 11 mins read Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Law and Conflict / New Technologies / Weapons Netta Goussac

Editor’s note: For those interested in the topic of legal reviews of weapons, it is ...

Legal reviews of weapons, means and methods of warfare involving artificial intelligence: 16 elements to consider

March 21, 2019 13 mins read Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Conduct of Hostilities / Law and Conflict / New Technologies / The most read blog posts in 2019 / Weapons Dustin A. Lewis

What are some of the chief concerns in contemporary debates around legal reviews of weapons, ...

Legal review of new weapons: Scope of the obligation and best practices

October 6, 2016 8 mins read Events and highlights / Law and Conflict / Weapons The editors

Article 36 of the Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions (AP I) states that each State Party is required to determine whether ...