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Pakistan
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6 Jan, 2014
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

A changing drone campaign: US covert actions in 2013

2013 saw fewer drone strikes than previous years (Photo: US Air Force/Airman 1st Class Jason Epley) In 2013 the number of drone strikes to hit Pakistan fell to the lowest levels of Obama’s presidency: 27 strikes reportedly hit the country’s tribal areas, down from a peak of 128 in 2010. And for the first time since Pakistan […]
6 Dec, 2013
Update
Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

The Bureau talks to Jeremy Scahill about Dirty Wars and drones

‘I don’t think we’ve scratched the surface of what’s happened’, Jeremy Scahill tells the Bureau (Photo: Civic Bakery) Journalist and filmmaker Jeremy Scahill says that handing control of CIA drone operations to the military could lead to ‘very serious abuses’, in Drone News, the Bureau’s new drones podcast. Scahill met the Bureau’s Alice K Ross when […]
5 Dec, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

UK complicity in US drone strikes is ‘inevitable’, Emmerson tells parliament

Conflict experts told British lawmakers the UK is probably complicit in the secret drone war (Jim Trodel/Flickr) It is ‘inevitable’ British spies are sharing intelligence with the US that is then used in drone strikes, a prominent UN expert told UK politicians yesterday. Ben Emmerson QC, who is leading an ongoing drones investigation for the UN, […]
3 Dec, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

November 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

CIA drones destroyed part of a madrassa in Hangu district – the first strike outside Pakistan’s tribal areas. (Reuters/Syed Shah) CIA drones kill one of the most senior militants in Pakistan. The first reported airstrikes in Yemen in three months kill alleged foreign fighters. More African peacekeepers will go to Somalia as al Shabaab remains […]
26 Nov, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

New analysis questions constraint on US drone strikes

The Bureau analyses President Obama’s drone strike guidelines six months on from his speech setting out the rules. (Pete Souza/White House). Six months after President Obama laid out US rules for using armed drones, a Bureau analysis shows that covert drone strikes in Yemen and Pakistan have killed more people than in the six months […]
2 Nov, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

October 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

Relatives hold photographs of victims of a January drone strike (Letta Tayler/Human Rights Watch). A single strike kills up to five in Pakistan, at the end of a month of sharp criticism of the US drone war. There are no reported drone attacks in Yemen for the second month running. The US military attacks Somalia twice, the […]
26 Oct, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Consensus grows among UN states for greater transparency on drone civilian deaths

UN members call for greater transparency (Image: Chris Woods) Key members of the United Nations – including some of Washington’s closest allies – broke with a decade of tradition on Friday when they endorsed calls for greater transparency over drone civilian deaths. The European Union, the United Kingdom and Switzerland were joined by the Russian Federation and China in calling for […]
22 Oct, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Human rights groups say civilian drone deaths violate international law

Rafeequl Rehman and his children showing a picture of Mamana Bibi, killed by a drone in Pakistan. (Image: Amnesty International) Leading human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have raised serious concerns about the legality of drone strikes in Pakistan and Yemen. The two organisations have conducted separate investigations into specific strikes to highlight […]
18 Oct, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

US must release data on civilian drone casualties, says UN report

Emmerson: Drones operate in an ‘accountability vacuum’ (Photo: United Nations) A report by a UN expert urges the US to ‘release its own data on the level of civilian casualties’ caused by drone strikes and attacks the lack of transparency surrounding CIA and US special forces drone operations. Ben Emmerson, a British barrister and UN […]
17 Oct, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

UN expert calls for increased transparency over armed drones

Heyns warns about a ‘lack of consensus’ over the international law governing drone strikes (Photo: United Nations) A UN expert has called for nations that operate armed drones to be more transparent and ‘publicly disclose’ how they use them. In a report prepared for the UN, Christof Heyns, the special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, points […]
1 Oct, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

September 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

Multiple drone strikes hit Pakistan, but no confirmed US attacks in Yemen (Senior Airman Larry E. Reid Jr/US Air Force). CIA drones strike Pakistan four times in September. Drone attacks pause for a month in Yemen. No strikes in Somalia. Al Shabaab violence grabs the world’s attention. Pakistan September 2013 actions Total CIA strikes in […]
2 Sep, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

August 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

Secretary of State John Kerry meets President Asif Ali Zardari in Pakistan.(State Department photo/Public Domain). One strike in Pakistan ends 34-day stretch without an attack. Yemen sees more strikes in a month than any time since March 2012. Medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières pulls out of Somalia. Pakistan August 2013 actions Total CIA strikes in August: 1 […]
2 Aug, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

July 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

A US Air Force Predator on patrol (US Air Force Photo/Lt Col Leslie Pratt). The CIA killed more people in Pakistan per strike than at any point since July 2012. US drones return to Yemen‘s skies and al Qaeda confirms the death of its deputy leader. UN report finds indications of increased US and UK involvement […]
1 Aug, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Is Congressional oversight tough enough on drones?

Dianne Feinstein (centre) and members of the Senate intelligence committee grill John Brennan (Photo: SenRockefeller via Flickr) In the Bureau’s latest investigation into the tactic of ‘double-tap’ strikes on rescuers, our field researcher’s findings appear to directly contradict an account of a strike attributed to staffers of the Congressional bodies charged with overseeing CIA drone […]
25 Jul, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

US officials attack ‘far from authoritative’ leaked drone report

A Pakistani soldier in FATA, where there have been 370 CIA drone strikes. (Photo: Chris Woods) US officials are claiming that an internal Pakistani assessment of civilian deaths from US drone strikes – obtained and published in full by the Bureau –  is ‘far from authoritative.’ The secret document was obtained by the Bureau from […]
1 Jul, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Six-month update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

In May, President Obama admitted for the first time US drones have caused civilian casualties in the covert drone war (Image: Peter Souza/White House). Bureau data suggests the CIA is killing fewer people in each strike in Pakistan. Lack of official transparency means it remains unclear who is carrying out strikes in Yemen. No reports of US […]
3 Jun, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

May 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

A US drone crashed in al Shabaab-controlled southern Somalia this month (Photo: Twitter) The Pakistan Taliban’s deputy commander is killed in a CIA drone strike A CIA drone attack in Yemen kills four, reportedly including a senior leader in al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula The Pentagon admits a US surveillance drone has crashed in Somalia Pakistan May […]
24 May, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

White House briefings lay out new drone rulebook – but questions remain

Clarity from the White House (Photo: Michael Baird/ Flickr) Two of the most controversial aspects of the US covert drone campaign – CIA control of strikes in Pakistan, and the use of so-called signature strikes – look set to continue until at least 2014, papers released by the White House indicate. In the wake of […]
23 May, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Obama frames covert drone war as necessary evil

 Barack Obama at a recent meeting of the National Security Council. (Pete Souza/ White House) Barack Obama has made it clear that the US will continue with its controversial targeted killing programme. In a major speech the US president also announced that he has signed into force a new – and secret – rule book for […]
2 May, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

April 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

An armed Reaper sits on the apron at Nellis Air Force Base. (cclark395/Flickr) Two CIA strikes kill at least eight in Pakistan, including an al Qaeda commander. US drone strikes return to Yemen after an 85-day pause. Militants launch one of their most well organised and deadly attacks to date, on a court house in […]
18 Apr, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Letter to Obama on targeted killings

Ten human rights and civil liberties groups have written an open letter to President Obama raising concerns over targeted killings and the use of drones. Here is the text in full:
18 Apr, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Red Cross chief urges caution over covert drones

ICRC president Peter Maurer urged ‘very restrained’ use of drones (Photo: Thierry Gassmann / www.icrc.org) The president of the humanitarian organisation International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) this week warned of the organisation’s concerns over drones being used in situations that are not official armed conflicts. Peter Maurer made the comments following a four-day trip to […]
11 Apr, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Secret US documents show Brennan’s ‘no civilian drone deaths’ claim was false

John Brennan being sworn in as CIA director in March 2013. (White House/ David Lienemann) US intelligence officials were aware that at least one civilian had died in drone strikes in Pakistan during 2011, despite claims to the contrary made by the man now running the Central Intelligence Agency. In June 2011, John Brennan, at […]
2 Apr, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

March 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

An armed Reaper waits on the ramp in Afghanistan (US Air Force). Two strikes hit Pakistan, ending a month-long pause between attacks. There were no reported US drone strikes in Yemen in March, marking the longest pause between covert attacks in three years. No strikes were again recorded in Somalia. Pakistan March 2013 actions Total CIA […]
15 Mar, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Pakistan government says ‘at least 400 civilians’ killed in drone strikes

The Pakistani government denied it secretly consents to strikes. (Photo: stephenpend) The Pakistani government estimates at least 400 civilians have been killed in drone strikes – a figure close to the Bureau’s own findings. In evidence to  Ben Emmerson QC, UN special rapporteur on counter-terrorism,  the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that CIA drones […]
1 Mar, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

February 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

John Brennan – leading proponent of the drone programme and the CIA’s director-designate (C-Span). CIA drones kill two alleged al Qaeda commanders in two strikes on Pakistan. US operations drop to zero in Yemen a year after President Saleh was ousted from power. No operations reported in Somalia. Pakistan February 2013 actions Total CIA strikes […]
27 Feb, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

No evidence Congressional committee does ‘utmost’ to follow up drone civilian death claims

Are Congressional oversight bodies really doing their ‘utmost’? (Photo L’ennnui/ Flickr) Claims by a powerful Senate oversight committee that it is doing its ‘utmost’ to verify claims of civilian casualties from covert US drone strikes have been undermined by the discovery that it has made no contact with any group conducting field studies into civilian […]
8 Feb, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

Incoming CIA boss says covert drone strikes are ‘last resort’

Brennan talks with Obama in the president’s private dining room, 2010 (Photo: White House) John Brennan, the incoming director of the Central Intelligence Agency, told US senators last night that the CIA does not carry out covert drone strikes ‘to punish terrorists for past transgressions’. He insisted instead that they are only used ‘as a […]
1 Feb, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

January 2013 Update: US covert actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia

A fully armed Reaper taxis before a mission (US Air Force – Sgt Brian Ferguson). In Pakistan a heavy CIA drone campaign targeted both so-called ‘good’ and ‘bad’ Taliban. Three senior militants were among the dead. Yemen was hit by the highest number of airstrikes in one month since June 2012, though none have been formally confirmed as US operations. […]
24 Jan, 2013
Update
Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen

UN launches major investigation into civilian drone deaths

Ben Emmerson QC addresses reporters in London (Photo: TBIJ) A UN investigation into the legality and casualties of drone strikes has been formally launched, with a leading human rights lawyer revealing the team that will carry out the inquiry. The announcement came as the latest reported US drone strike in Yemen was said to have […]