Artificial Intelligence in the Military and International Humanitarian Law A Proposal for Qatar

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a key technological enabler in many sectors, including the defense sector. As a result of its growing importance, several states across the world are investing in AI research and development to incorporate it into their military capabilities, leading to global competition, hence, an AI arms race. AI advances in the defense domain promise to enhance the military’s weaponry, capabilities and decision-making process; armies that are equipped with AI technologies have an advantage in terms of conducting operations, gathering information, and making more precise and informed decisions. AI breakthroughs, on the other hand, pose critical challenges to International Humanitarian Law (IHL), one of which prepares the way for the development of conventional weapons such as lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) and highly advanced military systems. The capability of such weapons to autonomously attack targets and make decisions without human interference raises legal concerns. This thesis argues that AI militarization is inevitable regardless of the critical legal challenges that continue to emerge as AI technology finds a way to be incorporated into different military domains and by many states. These challenges require further discussions to find a common ground for AI under IHL in order for them to be resolved under IHL. The thesis analyses AI militarization in advanced states that are deploying and developing AI technologies and discusses the legal challenges from an IHL perspective, it also looks at minor states that share some characteristics with Qatar to provide measures for Qatar to catch up with AI advances while adhering to IHL principles.