Kargu-2 fully autonomous drone attacks Libyan armed forces

What happened

During the Libyan civil conflict in 2020, Kargu-2 drones are reported to have autonomously targeted logistics convoys and retreating fighters loyal to General Khalifa Haftar. The drones were programmed to attack without requiring a data link between the operator and the munition, enabling true "fire, forget, and find" capability. 

The attack resulted in significant casualties among the targeted forces, though the exact number of deaths caused by autonomous operation specifically remains uncertain due to the mix of drone types used and the lack of explicit confirmation of autonomous kills.

The incident raised concerns about the reliability of autonomous targeting, the risk of erroneous attacks, and the potential for widespread harm with minimal human oversight.

Manufactured by Turkish weapons company STM Defense Technologies and designed for asymmetric warfare and anti-terrorist operations, the Kargu-2 attack quadcopter can be operated by a single soldier in both autonomous and manual modes, and has real-time image processing capabilities and machine learning algorithms embedded on the platform.

Why it happened

The deployment of the Kargu-2 in Libya was part of a broader offensive by the Government of National Accord, supported by Turkish military technology, to push back Haftar-affiliated forces from Tripoli. 

The use of autonomous drones was seen as a way to gain a tactical advantage, particularly against retreating forces with limited air defense capabilities. 

The Kargu-2’s autonomous mode was chosen for its ability to operate in environments where communication with operators might be disrupted or impossible.