The legal position is clear – under international humanitarian law Israel must protect civilians in Gaza. Ireland has consistently emphasised the international humanitarian law obligations upon all actors to distinguish at all times between civilians and combatants, and to take all feasible precautions to protect civilians.
Ireland continues to engage in international initiatives regarding military uses of artificial intelligence. These include attendance at the Dutch hosted REAIM Summit in February 2023 - an initiative on Responsible Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain, and the inaugural plenary in March 2024 for the US-led Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of AI and Autonomy, which we first endorsed in November 2023.
In these fora, Ireland highlights that international humanitarian law is paramount, and an autonomous approach to the application of force poses fundamental legal and ethical concerns. We believe that the unconstrained use of artificial intelligence and autonomy in a military context, and the consequent loss of human control over the use of force would create unacceptable risks to civilians.
