Recently divulged plans to shift the drone program away from the CIA and solely into the hands of the Defense Department (DoD) highlights a huge issue about targeted killings by CIA drone pilots.
Daniel Klaidman of the Daily Beast reports (emphasis ours):
"CIA and DoD operators would begin to work more closely together to ensure a smooth hand-off. The CIA would remain involved in lethal targeting, at least on the intelligence side, but would not actually control the unmanned aerial vehicles."
"Since the inception of the drone program, targeting decisions have been made inside the CIA with little or no input from other agencies, though the White House sometimes weighs in ... [but Obama] does not ... sign off on all CIA strikes."
The disclosure may explain how U.S. drones kill people whose identities aren’t confirmed.
These so-called "signature strikes"— in which targets are selected based on suspicious patterns of activity — reportedly make up most of the CIA's targeted killings.
And Klaidman's reporting magnifies the fact that CIA operators — or contractors — independently carry out these bombings on individuals who aren't on the president's kill list or even his "approved list in Pakistan."
That raises serious questions about accountability over civilian casualties, especially since one senior official toldThe New York Times a government joke that the CIA sees “three guys doing jumping jacks” and says it's "a terrorist training camp."
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism found that American hellfire missiles have killed hundreds of civilians, some of whom died when drones targeted fired secondary missiles targeting first responders. That tactic, known as a "double tap," is considered a war crime by the UN — so it might make sense to keep Obama out of the loop.
Then again, all civilian casualties aren't covert strikes since the president surely gave the go ahead for the targeted killing of Baitullah Mehsud in August 2009. The New America Foundation estimates that drones missed the Mehsud at least 16 times — killing 280 to 410 people— before the Pakistani Taliban chief was killed.
SEE ALSO: America Is Setting A Dangerous Precedent For The Drone Age
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