USCENTCOM: The Secret War in Yemen
October 15, 2012 by Anne Hobson |
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Author: Anne Hobson
Date: 15 October, 2012
Category: Political, Military
Actors: United States, Yemen, AQAP
As the United States enters the twelfth year of the War on Terror, the
counterterrorism effort has challenged the premises of international law.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) armed with Hellfire missiles with targeting
capabilities have replaced special forces and manned aircraft as the U.S.
tactic of choice against militants. According to the
<
http://chronicle.com/article/Moral-Robots-the-Future-of/134240/> American
Security Project, the U.S. military operates UAVs in declared combat
zones-Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya-while the CIA operates covert UAV programs
in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. These programs raise concerns about
oversight, international human rights, and international laws governing
warfare. If the White House doesn't address concerns regarding the most
recent UAV attacks in Yemen, the U.S. risks setting a dangerous precedent
for UAV warfare worldwide.
The <
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/09/yemen-drone-war/> Long War
Journal estimates that the U.S. has carried out three times as many strikes
this year as it has in previous years against Al Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula. The increase of covert UAV activity in Yemen raises many
important questions: How are the targets decided? Who authorizes the
strikes? Are the strikes legal?
<
http://www.npr.org/2012/05/01/151778804/john-brennan-delivers-speech-on-dro
ne-ethics> John Brennan, the White House counterterrorism adviser, argued
that UAV warfare is legally justified under Article 51 of the UN Charter and
militarily advantageous because it is low cost and limits casualties on both
sides. He argues that
<
http://www.npr.org/2012/05/01/151778804/john-brennan-delivers-speech-on-dro
ne-ethics> capturing insurgents is impossible due to AQAP's asymmetric
tactics and Yemen's difficult terrain. The U.S. military contends that UAV
warfare is a moral necessity. UAVs are more precise and efficient than
military alternatives like bombs, air strikes and ground troops.
<
http://www.npr.org/2012/05/01/151778804/john-brennan-delivers-speech-on-dro
ne-ethics> In April John Brennan stated: "there is nothing in international
law that bans the use of remotely piloted aircraft, or that prohibits us
from using lethal force against our enemies outside of an active
battlefield, at least when the country involved consents or is unable or
unwilling to take action against the threat."
However,
<
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/waging-war/remote-con
trol-war/the-future-of-war.html?play> scholars argue that international law
needs to be updated because UAVs, like
<
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/382397/military-technology/57612/
The-gunpowder-revolution-c-1300-1650> gunpowder in the 1500's, and military
aircraft in the early 1900's, have changed the face of warfare. In 2001 the
U.S. had less than 100 UAVs: now it has
<
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/aug/02/philosopher-moral-case-drones%2
0/> over 7,000. In April, the White House approved a policy to allow "
<
http://americansecurityproject.org/featured-items/2012/fact-sheet-contextua
lizing-the-drones-debate/> signature strikes" in Yemen. Before this policy,
viable targets were limited to individuals on "kill lists." Now any
military-age males in the proximity of targets can be considered combatants.
<
http://washingtonexaminer.com/how-obama-drones-on/article/2509416#.UGneqPl2
6xp> Critics of the policy argue that broadening the rules of engagement to
include signature strikes justifies what would have previously been
considered extrajudicial murders or war crimes.
Last week, Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi admitted that
<
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/09/29/yemens_president_warns_of_a_
civil_war_worse_than_afghanistan> he signs off on UAV strikes committed by
the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command and the CIA. The UAV strikes are a
source of political contention for President Hadi. His
<
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/10/07/265357/yemens-houthis-censure-presi
dent-hadi/> political opponentscriticize his complicity in U.S. UAV strikes.
A September airstrike missed its target and hit a minibus in the town of
Rada'a resulting in
<
http://www.longwarjournal.org/threat-matrix/archives/2012/09/us_drones_targ
eted_local_aqap.php> thirteen civilian casualties. When family members
tried to lay the bodies of victims in front of interim President Hadi's
house, security forces sent them away. Given the public's enraged response
to covert UAV warfare in Pakistan, it is likely that Yemen will press for
government accountability in the form of
<
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pakistanis-protest-latest-us-drone-stri
ke-104/2012/01/11/gIQAAWAgrP_video.html> protests of increasing violence.
Protests mark the beginning of political and social blowback from the
secret war in Yemen. The
<
http://americansecurityproject.org/featured-items/2012/fact-sheet-contextua
lizing-the-drones-debate/> American Security Project insists that this is
only the beginning of a deepening trend towards anti-Americanism. Another
unintended consequence of U.S. covert actions in Yemen is the psychological
effects UAV presence is having on the civilian population in Yemen.
<
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/22/the-moral-hazard-of-drones/
> Two University professors argued that the U.S. is fighting terrorism with
terrorism by intimidating civilians, "striking a blow against a powerful
adversary, [and] evading punishment." There are no checks and balances
defined in international law about UAV usage in undeclared war zones.
Limiting the CIA to UAV-use for surveillance and transferring CIA armed UAV
campaigns to U.S. military control would fix the problem of government
accountability. The U.S. needs to allow for disclosure of
<
http://thinkprogress.org/security/2012/06/26/506660/congress-oversight-dron
e-program/?mobile=nc> congressional oversight to a degree that does not put
intelligence operations at risk. Lastly, the U.S. needs to establish
international "rule of the skies" to promote individual liberties and human
rights. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International released
a
<
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jul/2/drone-industry-releases-ethi
cs-code/> Drone Industry Ethics Code that insists on a framework for UAV
testing and educating the public. These advancements need to be extended
into an international standard.
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Received on Thu Nov 15 2012 - 13:01:27 EST
