“America's use of drones to kill suspected terrorists has long fueled global suspicion and anger. When US officials discuss these strikes, if they discuss them at all, they emphasize their effectiveness in stopping terrorists in faraway places. But Amnesty International says these drone attacks may amount to US war crimes.” - PRI. In recent years the U.S. has orders several drone attacks on Middle Eastern terrorist groups, but often end up killing innocent civilians. Are drone attacks effective enough as a counter terrorist attack to continue them, or is the casualty rate high enough to consider it a war crime? 

 

"Pakistan is a place that is full of speculation and a lot of rumors about what is happening in drone strikes," says Naureen Shah, "and this is a heavily politicized issue." Although we are expected to continue to look for weapons of mass destruction, since we have been attacked by terrorist acts in the past, drone are killing people that have nothing to do with those attacks. Last October, Rafiq Rehman was going to visit his sister when a drone missile struck his house, killing his mother and injuring his three children. Rehman tells us, “I have no idea why my grandmother was killed. When the drone hit, I was outside with my grandmother. Everything became dark, I was scared, so I started to run. Then I noticed my hand was bleeding, so I tried to clean my hand, but blood kept coming out. But I was very scared, so I just kept running.” In this situation, these people were attacked “while being foreign”. I believe that the U.S. should continue to use drone strikes but for the right reasons.  

    Obama's administration is highly regarded for its national security record, but there is controversy over the so called "kill list". Law makers signed a letter demanding more justification on the legal justification of these acts. Just a few hours later NBC News leaked the Department of Justice "white paper memo" outlining the legality of the of Obama's policy. The memo included vague information, including that "informed, high level" officials could use the drone however they felt fit.