UN News Today 25 August 2026 — UN News

As unconfirmed reports indicate that fully autonomous and AI-guided drones are in use on the battlefield, the UN and the Red Cross joined forces on Tuesday renewed their urgent call for stricter global controls. The timing of the appeal reflects growing concerns that increasingly sophisticated weapons are being deployed at ever greater speed and scale. Disarmament experts say that even arms manufacturers want clarity on the legal issues at stake. Here’s Mélanie Régimbal, Chief of the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs in Geneva: “Autonomous weapon systems that can select and engage targets without human judgement and control raise profound concerns…The Secretary-General has long warned of the dangers posed by these systems, emphasizing that machines that can select or engage targets and take human lives without human control and judgement are politically unacceptable, morally repugnant and should be prohibited under international law.” The UN and Red Cross want governments to move beyond discussions and begin negotiations on a legally binding instrument with clear prohibitions and restrictions. The joint appeal comes ahead of the seventh Review Conference of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, in November in Geneva. This meeting represents the “clearest path available” for States to agree to move towards negotiations on a legally binding instrument, both organizations stressed. To Afghanistan, where a staggering 3.7 million malnourished children now suffer…