![]() Roggio, who has estimated 207 civilian deaths over the same period in Pakistan and Yemen alone, said discrepancies would narrow if the United States and observers agreed on the details of several especially lethal strikes. This would include the names of those killed and dates, locations and other details on the strikes. The 2016 report is due May 1, 2017.īill Roggio of the Long War Journal, which also tracks drone strikes, said the administration’s report will “do little to quell the criticism” of those who want full disclosure of civilian casualties. The order requires the government to publicize the number of strikes each year and of combatants and civilians killed. It makes protecting civilians a central element in U.S. policies to limit non-combatant casualties. Seeking to enhance safeguards for civilian protection for the rest of his presidency and beyond, Obama also signed an executive order Friday that details U.S. ![]() The London-based group credited the administration’s release as a welcome step toward greater transparency but said more information on specific strikes was needed to reconcile different assessments. It records such deaths on the basis of journalists’ reports, advocacy organizations, leaked government documents, court papers and field investigations. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism said the administration’s number is a fraction of the 380 to 801 civilian deaths it has tallied. “We’re concerned that as more countries gain access to armed drone technology, it’s more likely that drones will be used as a first response in conflicts and more likely civilians will pay the price.” “The numbers reported by the White House today simply don’t add up, and we’re disappointed by that,” said Federico Borello, executive director of Center for Civilians in Conflict in Washington. drone operations for years were not convinced. officials cited several reasons for the discrepancy, including the government’s access to sensitive intelligence that helps it more accurately identify the deceased. The administration noted the much higher estimates by non-governmental organizations, which go as high as 900 for the same timeframe. Between 64 and 116 non-combatants were killed. The attacks killed an estimated 2,372 to 2,581 combatants in those seven years, the report said. The data didn’t include strikes in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan, which the United States considers areas of active hostilities. He did not mention where the strikes occurred, but the Defense Department and CIA have pursued targets in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and Libya. The report by National Intelligence Director James Clapper said the United States conducted 473 counterterror strikes, including those by unmanned drones, between January 2009 and December 2015. Human rights and other groups quickly complained the administration undercounted civilian casualties and called on the White House to release far more information. The first-ever public assessment is a response to mounting pressure for more information about lethal U.S. WASHINGTON (AP) - Peeling back some of the secrecy of America’s drone strikes on suspected terrorists, the Obama administration on Friday said it has killed as many as 116 civilians in counterterror attacks in Pakistan, Yemen and other places where the United States is not engaged in active, on-the-ground warfare.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |