The Legality and Implications of Autonomous Weapons System (AWS) under International Humanitarian Law

Abstract

The emergence of autonomous weapons systems (AWS), which can select and engage targets without human intervention, presents significant challenges to international humanitarian law (IHL). Autonomous Weapons systems raises significant concern under international humanitarian law, as their ability to select and engage targets without human intervention may lead to unintended harm to civilians and non-combatants, potentially violating principles of distinction and proportionality. The legality of autonomous weapons systems is uncertain and their development and use may require new international regulations to ensure compliance with humanitarian law and prevent potential war crimes, emphasizing 
the need for ongoing debate and clarification on their permissible use in armed conflicts. The objective of this paper is to assess the risks and challenges posed by AWS to civilians, noncombatants and international peace and security. The research methodology employed in this paper was content analysis .Relevant documents, including national laws, international agreements and policy statements are analyzed to identify trends and patterns of the regulations of AWS. The paper findings reveals that the development and use of AWS raises fundamental ethical concerns, as they delegate life and death decisions to machines. The paper hereby recommend that there should be an establishment of clear guidelines and standards for the development, deployment and use of AWS, including requirements for predictability, reliability and transparency