War Costs Innocent Lives and US Credibility

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Proponents of the drone war, including President Barack Obama, claim that drone strikes are precise and only target terrorists. But a study from Columbia Law School’s Human Rights Institute finds that the number of Pakistani civilians killed in drone strikes is “significantly and consistently underestimated” and that as many as 98% of those killed by drone strikes are civilians.

While it is ultimately impossible to get exact numbers, this means that for every “terrorist” killed by a drone strike, anywhere between 10 and 50 civilians are killed.

Read that sentence again. Let it sink in.

Obama has authorized 193 drone strikes in Pakistan – four times the amount authorized by George W. Bush. According to Global Research, over the past four years, Obama has authorized attacks in Pakistan which have killed more than 800 innocent civilians and just 22 Al-Qaeda officers.

That constitutes at least 36 civilians per target.