UN, Red Cross warn of autonomous weapons risks, urge regulation

The United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross issued a joint warning on August 25, 2026, that the world is dangerously close to a future where autonomous weapons systems, often called "killer robots," could target humans without human intervention. In a statement released in Geneva, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric called for urgent international regulation, stating that the risks associated with this technology have intensified since their initial appeal in 2023. "We are now dangerously close to crossing a moral red line: the autonomous targeting of humans by machines," the joint statement read.