PhD Defence: Keeping Our Humanity

On 22 January 2026  Jessica Dorsey will defend her thesis at Utrecht University, entitled: 'Keeping Our Humanity: Ensuring the Legitimacy of Military Targeting Operations Through Civilian Harm Mitigation in Increasingly Autonomous Warfare.'

This dissertation critically examines how the nature of modern warfare, particularly remote and increasingly autonomous, has altered long-standing norms around the legitimacy of military operations, particularly with regard to the protection of civilians.

Armed drones and AI

Over the past two decades, technological developments such as armed drones and AI-driven systems have profoundly changed modern warfare, both in how war is waged and in the justification for the use of force. Central to this shift is the growing emphasis on civilian harm mitigation (CHM). This is increasingly enshrined in the military doctrines of Western democracies such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. CHM is seen not only as a legal and ethical obligation but also as a strategic imperative essential to operational success and legitimacy.

Legitimacy in warfare

This dissertation focuses on a conceptual and applied analysis of the evolving criteria for operational legitimacy in warfare. It addresses several underexposed questions: Why is CHM now considered essential for operational legitimacy? How is legitimacy defined and assessed in military target selection? And how can that legitimacy, and the protection of civilians, be maintained as AI and autonomous systems increasingly make or influence strike decisions?

The author develops a definitional framework to analyze the relationships between legality, transparency, accountability, and legitimacy in military operations. This framework is applied in five core chapters, based on research published or accepted in leading academic and policy platforms, including the Oxford Handbook on Remote Warfare, International Law Studies, and the International Review of the Red Cross. The research not only contributes to academic discussions but also offers practical insights for decision-making in military and policy circles. The study sits at the intersection of international humanitarian law (IHL), ethics, military strategy, and emerging technology.

Support

The research reaffirms the central principles of HOR, particularly the balance between military necessity and humanity, as the foundation for lawful and legitimate military action. These principles become even more crucial in new and ambiguous contexts, such as AI-driven attacks, where legal interpretations and operational judgments are under pressure. Operational legitimacy is understood more broadly here than mere legal permissibility; it revolves around the “worthiness of support” that armed forces earn from diverse stakeholders, including policymakers, civil society, legal professionals, and the public.

As warfare becomes technologically more complex, legitimacy must be assessed based on transparency, accountability, and the minimization of civilian casualties, not solely on legal norms. Ultimately, the dissertation argues that CHM offers a powerful analytical framework for understanding and shaping the legitimacy of contemporary military operations.

Protection of civilians

In an era of rapidly advancing AI technology and increasing weapon system autonomy, armed forces must develop governance structures that are both legally constrained and morally sound. By applying a multi-stakeholder approach, this dissertation points the way to a future in which the protection of civilians becomes an integral part of military action, even in an era of automated warfare.

Streaming video

You can follow this PhD defence via streaming video: