Joystick Job with a License to Kill

A United Nations study criticizes America’s number one ranking in illegal killings.

A recent U.N. report criticizes the United States as the world’s number one illegal killer. The ranking was achieved because of the activities of America’s security services, military and, above all, its employment of aerial drones.

Somewhere in the United States (or in Bagram, or aboard a ship somewhere), uniformed personnel sit in front of monitors manipulating joysticks. When the sensors aboard the drones these joysticks control find a target, a rocket is fired. Hours later, agencies report that another al-Qaida leader has been killed. There is never any mention of additional victims — but innocent bystanders are almost always killed as well.

This kind of targeted killing began under President George W. Bush. In the eight years of his administration, unmanned drones were used against at least 45 targets. His successor, Barack Obama, came into office in 2009 as America’s 44th president, preaching human rights and justice for the world’s people. But last year there were 53 aerial drone attacks in Pakistan alone. So far this year, he has added another 39 to that total. Most recently, one of Osama bin Laden’s in-laws was killed, reportedly the number three man in the al-Qaida hierarchy.

University of New York law professor Philip Alston, compiler of the U.N. report, had no complaint with the a priori killing of terrorists; his objections are based on the secrecy of such illegal activities and the fact that the international community is never told when or where the CIA decides to make the kills, who the targets are and why they’re selected, and how the killing of innocent bystanders will be avoided. Alston criticizes such an arbitrary interpretation of the right to self-defense and concludes by calling for a cessation of such actions.

A recent report from Yemen points out the fact that the U.S. intelligence services not only violate the sovereignty of other nations by using aerial drones, they also send special units out in pursuit of targets. The Yemeni government recently issued a precautionary statement saying it rejected the American “wanted dead or alive” strategy. Previously, Obama’s National Security Council had given the green light for the CIA assassination of Anwar al-Awlaki in southern Yemen. Al-Awlaki holds dual American and Yemeni citizenship, and is suspected by the United States of having ties to al-Qaida.

But the tactic of using drones militarily also harbors dangers for Washington. Currently, some 30 nations are working on the development or modification of aerial drones. They are extremely difficult to defend against — even if they’re aimed at the White House.