A U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk drone aircraft assigned to the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing is refueled during operations on the flight line of an undisclosed base in Southwest Asia, January 10, 2010. Credit: REUTERS/Tech. Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol-US Air Force/HandoutFrom Reuters:
(Reuters) - By all appearances, the Obama administration wanted him alive, not dead. It posted a $5 million reward for information leading to the "location, arrest, and/or conviction" of Baitullah Mehsud, the fierce leader of the Pakistani Taliban, in a March 25, 2009 notice.
But delivering Mehsud alive for prosecution was never a serious option for the Central Intelligence Agency and U.S. military Special Operations teams that track such "high-value" targets. He was killed less than five months later in a CIA-directed drone strike.
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My Comment: Drone strikes may kill a lot of innocent bystanders, but it is also a very effective weapon in targeting known terror leaders and/or commanders. As improvements in technology makes drones even more effective and deadlier, expect this policy to not only continue .... but probably expanded to conduct operations in conventional wars.
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