Thursday, May 31, 2012

Two Critical Commentaries From Britain On U.S. Drone War Strategy

MQ-1 Predator

It May Seem Painless, But Drone War In Afghanistan Is Destroying The West's Reputation -- Peter Oborne, The Telegraph

A new phase of secret, unaccountable and illegal warfare is being deployed by General Petraeus and the CIA.


The theory and practice of warfare has evolved with amazing speed since al-Qaeda’s attack on mainland America in September, 2001. In less than 11 years it is already possible to discern three separate phases.

First, we had the era of ground invasion followed by military occupation. This concept, which feels terribly 20th-century today, appeared at first to work well, with the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan followed by the easy destruction of Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

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Photo USAF

America's Murderous Drone Campaign Is Fuelling Terror -- Seumas Milne, The Guardian

Obama's escalation of a war that's already caused thousands of deaths will only destabilise his own allies and bolster al-Qaida.

More than a decade after George W Bush launched it, the "war on terror" was supposed to be winding down. US military occupation of Iraq has ended and Nato is looking for a way out of Afghanistan, even as the carnage continues. But another war – the undeclared drone war that has already killed thousands – is now being relentlessly escalated.

From Pakistan to Somalia, CIA-controlled pilotless aircraft rain down Hellfire missiles on an ever-expanding hit list of terrorist suspects – they have already killed hundreds, perhaps thousands, of civilians in the process.

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