Great: CIA has no idea who they kill in 1/4 of Predator drone strikes

It’s not about the technology, it’s about the ham-fisted way the Obama administration is using the technology. New documents show that the CIA is unsure of the identity or affiliation of 1/4 of all drone targets and cannot say how these individuals are a threat to US national security.

from NBC News:

The CIA did not always know who it was targeting and killing in drone strikes in Pakistan over a 14-month period, an NBC News review of classified intelligence reports shows.

About one of every four of those killed by drones in Pakistan between Sept. 3, 2010, and Oct. 30, 2011, were classified as “other militants,” the documents detail. The “other militants” label was used when the CIA could not determine the affiliation of those killed, prompting questions about how the agency could conclude they were a threat to U.S. national security.

The uncertainty appears to arise from the use of so-called “signature” strikes to eliminate suspected terrorists — picking targets based in part on their behavior and associates. A former White House official said the U.S. sometimes executes people based on “circumstantial evidence.”

read the rest

If the military or CIA has no idea who a target is or how they are a target to our country’s security, then we have no business taking their life. This is not a difficult concept.

I have no problem with the use of drone strikes on the battlefield. I have no problem with targeted drone strikes on known US enemy targets, but blowing away anonymous individuals who pose no specific threat is unacceptable.

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