The CIA Now Has White House Permission To Kill U.S. Citizens

It’s Legal – An Open Range For U.S. Killer Drones -- Small Wars Journal

The Central Intelligence Agency now has legal permission to kill Anwar al-Aulaqi, a United States citizen. An article from today’s Washington Post explains:

Because he is a U.S. citizen, adding Aulaqi to the CIA list required special approval from the White House, officials said. The move means that Aulaqi would be considered a legitimate target not only for a military strike carried out by U.S. and Yemeni forces, but also for lethal CIA operations.

(I’m confused by the phrase “special approval from the White House.” Being a building and an inanimate object, I did not know that the White House was capable of giving out approvals. I will assume this means that President Obama gave this approval – why couldn’t the author say this?)

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My Comment: This is an excellent summary on the decision (and legal implications) of ordering the CIA to assassinate U.S. citizens. More news on radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki can be found here.

More News On Anwar al-Awlaki

Muslim cleric Aulaqi is 1st U.S. citizen on list of those CIA is allowed to kill -- Washington Post
Al-Awlaki dad to U.S.: Give me time to get son out of hiding -- CNN
Finding Anwar al-Awlaki will be difficult; killing him even more so -- Times Online
U.S. citizen Anwar Awlaki added to CIA target list -- L.A. Times
White House approves assassination of cleric linked to Christmas bomb plot -- The Guardian
Obama authorises targeted killing of radical AMERICAN Muslim cleric who inspired Christmas Day bomber -- Daily Mail
U.S. Approves Targeted Killing of American Cleric -- New York Times
Anwar al-Awlaki: Is it legal to kill an American in war on terror? -- Christian Science Monitor
Dead to rights: U.S. is fully justified in hunting down top Al Qaeda terror master -- New York Daily News editorial
Incomplete Picture on Justification for Killing American Citizen -- The Atlantic
The National Security Case Against Killing Anwar al-Awlaki -- Washington Independent