Genocidal Human-Machine Assemblage: Artificial Intelligence and the Mass Extermination of Civilians in Gaza

Abstract

Speaker: Vasja Badalič, Institute of Criminology, Ljubljana, Slovenia Moderator: Ülker Sözen, University of Passau & Leipzig University Abstract: This paper discusses how the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the target selection process exacerbated genocidal violence in Gaza. The first objective is to examine how various AI-enabled systems, together with judgments made by Israeli soldiers, erased civilians from the battlefield by redefining them as military targets. The paper examines the shortcomings of AI technology (e.g., uncertainty in proxy-based target determinations, faulty training dataset, incorporated error rate) and human decisions (e.g., using “dumb” bombs, relying on too wide pinpointing of targets) that contributed to the erasure of civilians. The second objective is to show how the human-machine assemblage created the conditions for indiscriminate and disproportionate armed attacks that ignored the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.