U.S. Predator drone. (photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP Photo)
As
Military Handles Drone Strikes, Less Scrutiny by Congress
By Ken Dilanian, Associated
Press
23 December 15
Cutting
the U.S. military in charge of drone strikes in Iraq and Syria has effectively
reduced congressional scrutiny of those sensitive operations, leaving some
activists, lawmakers and U.S. intelligence officials fearful of increased
civilian casualties.
For
the last decade, the CIA ran the American effort to find and kill al-Qaida
members with drones, mostly in Pakistan and Yemen, outside of declared war
zones. But the frequency of those strikes has plummeted to about one a month.
The main counterterrorism focus now is the war against the Islamic State in
Iraq and Syria, where military special operations forces are flying drones that
hunt and kill a senior militant every two days.
The
shift reflects both legal and philosophical considerations. When he announced a
framework for targeted killing two years ago, President Barack Obama argued
that the military, not a secret intelligence agency, should be the primary
instrument of lethal force against terrorists.
But
one byproduct of the change, American officials say, is that congressional
staffers no longer examine the details of each individual drone strike.
Some
CIA officials, lawmakers, and outside activists worry that the new arrangement
creates a greater risk of mistakes, given that drone strikes regularly target
key militants who don't wear uniforms and embed themselves in civilian
populations. Congress, they say, should independently review each drone strike
to monitor targeting decisions and compliance with the rules of engagement.
"Congress
ought to be exercising equally rigorous oversight irrespective of which agency
or department uses lethal force," said Raha Wala, senior counsel at Human
Rights First. "We are talking about some of the most legally, politically
and diplomatically fraught counterterrorism operations, whether they occur in
or out of a war zone."
The
Associated Press interviewed a variety of legislative and executive branch
officials for this story, nearly all of whom declined to be named because they
weren't authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
As the
CIA's drone war in Pakistan ramped up in 2010, the spy agency was conducting
more than two attacks a week. Intelligence committee staffers with security
clearances began driving to CIA headquarters to watch video of each drone
strike in Pakistan and Yemen as they reviewed the intelligence documents
undergirding the decisions to press the button. The staffers scrutinized
civilian casualty claims and whether the decision to fire adhered to Obama's
rule that there should be near certainty that no civilian would be harmed.
Because
CIA drone strikes are covert, the CIA must disclose them to the House and
Senate intelligence committees. The military does not face the same legal
requirement.
Military
drone strikes in Iraq and Syria, by contrast, are scrutinized less frequently
by committees that have shown great deference to the armed forces.
Congressional aides don't watch video or otherwise examine the details of each
strike, officials say. There are simply too many, and the personnel in charge
of them are overseas or unavailable for frequent briefings, they say.
Defense
Department officials and some lawmakers argue Congress can and does demand
information about any military strike that elicits allegations of civilian
casualties.
"I
don't think we've ever gotten resistance when we say we want to dig in
more," said Rep. Mac Thornberry, the Texas Republican who chairs the House
Armed Services Committee.
Sen.
Angus King, a Maine independent who serves on both the armed services and
intelligence committees, said he was satisfied with the level of oversight of
military drone strikes.
"I
can't say it's identical, but it's not that different," from the
intelligence committee scrutiny, he said.
In
late 2013, at Thornberry's urging, the Armed Services Committee began requiring
quarterly classified briefings and written notifications of each capture or
kill operation outside a war zone. But those rules don't apply to Iraq and
Syria.
There,
the U.S. military is conducting its drone operations alongside a conventional
bombing campaign that has carried out some 9,000 strikes, each one presenting a
risk of civilian casualties or targeting error. Officials say there is no way
that committee aides could examine them all, and no good reason a drone strike
should merit greater scrutiny than a conventional bombing run. They say a drone
is just another weapons system, no different than a B-2 bomber.
Despite
promises that the military would be more transparent about targeted strikes,
the details of the operations remain secret. There is no way for the public to know
whether the drones' Hellfire missiles are hitting the right people and avoiding
civilian casualties. The Pentagon has not even said how many strikes it has
carried out against militant leaders, and it does not say publicly whether a
drone was used.
Neither
does the military disclose its rules of engagement. It seeks to avoid civilian
casualties, but the "near certainty" standard does not apply in war
zones, officials say.
In the
overall air campaign, the military has acknowledged two instances of civilian
deaths. A spokesman for U.S. Central Command, Kyle Raines, said as of Wednesday
there have been 117 total allegations of civilian casualties. Of those, 85
allegations have been determined to be not credible. Eleven allegations remain
open, he said.
The
military is able to conduct targeted strikes "very professionally,"
Thornberry said.
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