To be publishing this journal as the brutality of war is on display every night on our television screens may seem simultaneously futile and deeply meaningful. With the horrors of Gaza, Israel, and Ukraine played out before our eyes, the insistence on the ethical limits of warfare, and on the virtues that must guide all warriors and their superiors, must not be diminished. But does it make any difference? One might indeed despair. The alternative, to stay silent on the ethical foundations of justified warfare, is, however, unimaginable.
This issue brings together theoretical and practical questions of warfare that are truly relevant to current conflicts. We see this not least as artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled weapons and guidance systems are increasingly being employed – by the sides that have them – while classical questions within military ethics, from proportionality to selective conscientious objection, remain as topical as ever.
Our next and final issue of this volume of the Journal of Military Ethics, a combined double issue of articles on moral injury and attendant crucial psychological issues, will follow hot on the heels of this one, as we turn from 2023 to 2024 in sincere hopes of a lasting reduction in armed conflict, and a resurgence of respect for military ethics.