Over 50 groups request greater transparency from Biden on drone program
Mike Brest
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A group of more than 50 organizations has called on President Joe Biden to provide more transparency within his administration’s counterterrorism and drone programs.
Biden signed a classified policy to add restrictions on how the United States approves counterterrorism drone strikes back in October, though few details have emerged publicly about the policy that formalized various temporary limits Biden implemented in the first days of his administration.
WHITE HOUSE IMPOSES ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS ON COUNTERTERRORISM DRONE STRIKES
The 54 civil and human rights groups, which include the ACLU, Human Rights Watch, Human Rights First, and Amnesty International, sent a letter to the president urging more transparency on the program on Monday.
They argued that the new policy “appears to be the latest iteration of a U.S. extrajudicial killing program targeting individuals suspected of terrorism outside of recognized battlefields,” and they added, “ Many of us were among the more than 110 civil society groups that called last year for an end to this program, citing its appalling toll on Muslim, Brown, and Black communities in multiple parts of the world. Now, we are deeply dismayed by the administration’s decision to keep secret this policy and the associated national counterterrorism strategy.”
The Pentagon’s new National Defense Strategy “commits to using force only as the last resort, consistent with U.S. values and laws, with the informed consent of the American people, and while promoting transparency and accountability,” the organizations wrote. “Meeting these commitments requires, at a minimum, basic transparency about the rules and policies governing the use of force. In line with your commitments, we strongly urge you to publicly release the PPM and the accompanying national counterterrorism strategy.”
Last week, the Protection of Civilians in Conflict Caucus in Congress wrote to the president urging more transparency as well.
“As members of the Protection of Civilians in Conflict Caucus, we write in response to reports describing the new Biden administration targeting standards employed outside conventional war zones in countries such as Somalia and Yemen. We are heartened to read that the new policy reportedly requires the military establish ‘near certainty’ that the intended target is a member of a designated terrorist group approved for direct action and near certainty that no civilians will be killed or injured,” the members wrote.
The administration said at the time Biden signed the policy change to set the “highest standards” to launch a strike.
“President Biden’s formal counterterrorism guidance directs his Administration to be discerning and agile in protecting Americans against evolving global terrorist challenges,” Liz Sherwood-Randall, Biden’s homeland security adviser, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner at the time. “Additionally, the president’s guidance on the use of lethal action and capture operations outside areas of active hostilities requires that U.S. counterterrorism operations meet the highest standards of precision and rigor, including for identifying appropriate targets and minimizing civilian casualties.”
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Sherwood-Randall oversaw a 20-month review that led to these changes, though they only apply to strikes in areas that the U.S. does not consider to be “areas of active hostilities.”
Only Iraq and Syria, where U.S. forces and their partner are fighting against the remaining Islamic State militants, are currently deemed to be those areas where these changes will not apply. It also does not apply to strikes that are carried out in defense of partner forces, though it will, however, apply to countries where drone strikes have been conducted in recent years, including Afghanistan, Somalia, and Yemen.
Organizations urge greater transparency from the Biden administration on changes to drone program