Rule of Law and Human Rights Aspects of Using Artificial Intelligence for Counter-Terrorism Purposes

The Context

The use of artificial intelligence-driven systems and applications for data analytics, autonomous operations, and the generation of unique content presents unprecedented opportunities and challenges for counter-terrorism efforts. The development of these new technologies and their use for counter-terrorism purposes raise several questions regarding the rule of law, human rights law, and AI governance.

The Partners

In collaboration with the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) and the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland (FDFA), the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) seeks to support the advancement of policy discussions and analysis on human rights-centred approaches to the use of AI for counter-terrorism purposes. This contribution will support the FDFA and CTED's commitment to ensuring that international law remains inalienable and that the fight against terrorism is always conducted in accordance with human rights principles.

The Aim

To this end, the partners will conduct desk research and organise an expert workshop in Geneva to produce recommendations to address the challenges and opportunities presented by human rights-centred approaches to the use of AI for counter-terrorism purposes.
The research and expert workshop will have five overarching objectives through expert discussion and written outcomes:

  1. Examine rule of law and human rights-related approaches to the use of AI for counter-terrorism;
  2. Identify and review challenges of human rights-centered approaches to the use of AI for counter-terrorism;
  3. Address the existing gap in AI governance and discuss a framework for human rights compliance;
  4. Offer innovative concepts, insights, and perspectives to uphold the rule of law and human rights law in future decision-making;
  5. Unite multidisciplinary scholars and practitioners to produce actionable policy recommendations.

The Workshop

In May 2025, a first expert workshop was organized and brought together experts to explore the challenges and opportunities of applying human rights-centred approaches to the use of AI in counter-terrorism efforts. The workshop began with a scene-setting session that examined the legal, practical, and technical dimensions of AI use for counter-terrorism. It then transitioned into a series of moderated sessions on a specific human rights dimension of AI use in counter-terrorism, with both technical and legal perspectives: 

  • The right to privacy: addressing issues such as surveillance, automated decision-making, data collection, data storage and data sharing;
  • The rights to liberty and security: addressing issues such as predictive policing, profiling, and criminal investigations;
  • The rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly: addressing issues such as content moderation, counter narratives, social network analysis, and the use of facial recognition and emotion detection. The final session focused on the broader rule of law implications, including issues of accountability and transparency. The resulting output will be published in our publication series. 

The participants to this project are (in alphabetical order): 

  • Ms Alyazia ALSHEEBANI, Political Affairs Officer, United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED)
  • Dr Jonathan ANDREW, Research Fellow, Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
  • Ms Jihane BEN YAHIA , Senior Legal Analyst, Global Center on Cooperative Security (GCCS)
  • Mr Pascal-Hervé BOGDANSKI, Senior legal Adviser, Directorate of International Law, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
  • Ms Francesca BOSCO, Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer, CyberPeace Institute
  • Dr Stuart CASEY-MASLEN, Associate Fellow, Global Fellowship Initiative, Geneva Centre for Security Policy
  • Mr Donato COLUCCI, Senior Border and Identity Solutions (BIS) Specialist, International Organization for Migration (IOM)
  • Mr Tomaso FALCHETTA, Global Advocacy Coordinator, Privacy International
  • Mr Cyprien FLUZIN, Policy and Research Fellow, Geneva Peacebuilding Platform, Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
  • Dr Florence FOSTER, Senior Project Officer, Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
  • Dr Daniel FRANK, Head of Section Human Rights, Rule of Law & CT, Directorate of International Law, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
  • Ms Anna GREIPL, Researcher, Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
  • Mr Adam HADLEY, Executive Director, Tech Against Terrorism
  • Ms Jelena JOLIC, Deputy Head, Counter-Terrorism Division, Directorate General I - Human Rights and Rule of Law, Council of Europe
  • Ms Samar KHAMIS, Human Rights Officer, Counter Terrorism and Human Rights, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • Mr Adjewoda Koami KUTOATI, Head, Database and Documentation Unit, African Union/African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT/CAERT)
  • Dr Anita LAMPRECHT, Consultant, DiploFoundation
  • Ambassador Sandra LENDENMANN WINTERBERG, Vice Director, Directorate of International Law, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
  • Ms Arianna LEPORE, Coordinator of the Global Initiative on Handling Electronic Evidence, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
  • Dr Cecilia NADDEO, Senior Human Rights Officer, United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED)
  • Mr Nicola PIACENTE, Committee on Counter-Terrorism, Council of Europe
  • Dr Jean-Marc RICKLI, Head of Global and Emerging Risks, Geneva Centre for Security Policy
  • Mr Jean-Michel ROUSSEAU, Interim Head of the Business and Security Division, Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
  • Dr Erin SALTMAN, Membership and Programs Director, Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT)
  • Dr David SCHARIA, Director, United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate
  • Dr Christina SCHORI LIANG, Head of Counterterrorism and Preventing Violent Extremism, Geneva Centre for Security Policy
  • Ms Vanja SKORIC, Program Director, European Center for Not-For-Profit Law (ECNL)
  • Ms Azin TADJDINI, Human Rights Officer, Digital technologies & Human Rights Rule of Law, Equality and Non-Discrimination Branch, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • Ms Dinah VAN DER GEEST, Digital Operations Manager, Article 19
  • Dr Tobias VESTNER, Director, Research and Policy Advice Department, Geneva Centre for Security Policy