Officially U.S. government does not admit that Anwar al-Awlaki was killed in a drone attack!

The New York Times and the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) have been seeking to have the U.S. government release information about the (alleged!) program of targeted killings using drones. The suit has been ongoing since June 2011 and the U.S. government has repeatedly taken the position that to even affirm or deny the existence of the program would endanger national security.

This is the official position even though U.S. officials and the president have repeatedly spoken about the program indicating how successful it has been and how few civilian casualties there are.Obama even boasted about killing the Anwar al-Awlaki a U.S. citizne in Yemen. There was even a long article in the New York Times based no doubt on information deliberately leaked to paint a mostly positive portrait of the president and his kill list.

Al-Awlaki was killed by a drone attack in Yemen on Sept. 30 2011. Of the killing Obama boasted:: "The death of Awlaki marks another significant milestone in the broader effort to defeat al-Qaeda and its affiliates. Furthermore this success is a tribute to our intelligence community …"" Even though Obama said this apparently it does not imply that there even is a drone program or that Al-Awlaki was killed by a drone.. Apparently the government cannot even acknowledge what the president clearly said.

This idiocy has a rational purpose. The U.S. government can release classified information that they believe will help them politically while denying critics any information that might be disadvantageous politically. However the U.S. government does admit that it was responsible for the killing of Osama bin Laden! For more see this article.. The entire Motion For Summary Judgment presented by the U.S. government can be found here.

U.S. drone attack surge in Yemen

The U.S. is revving up its drone war against militants in Yemen with the support of the new government there. The U.S. has ordered dozens of drone attacks. The U.S. is particularly interested in attacking bases of AQAP (Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula).

Back in Sept. last year drone attacks killed the U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki who was a propagandist for Al Qaeda. Later his son and nephew were also killed in drone attacks.

Since last May 26 attacks have been recorded..There have been nine attacks in 2012 already five in March. Thirty militants were allegedly killed in 3 attacks on the city of Zinjibar held by a militant group. The number of attacks this year are comparable to the ten that have taken place in Pakistan.

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism in the UK has estimated that as many as 516 have been killed in drone attacks. Over a hundred were civilians.

The attacks are mounted mostly from a base in Djibouti by the CIA or U.S. special forces command. However no details are ever confirmed about the missions. Amnesty International among other groups has called on the U.S. to take responsibility for its covert actions and to investigate evidence of multiple civilian deaths. For more see this article.

Ron Paul speaks out against Obama's drone attacks

   Paul has been consistent in his attack on counter-terror methods which violate basic human rights. He has also taken a strong anti-war stance in the face of the fact that many Republicans are hawks.
    In a campaign speech in Iowa Paul noted that even Nazis after World War II got trials. Now even a U.S. citizen such as Anwar al-Awlaki can be assassinated  without any trial, or even being charged. Both Awlaki and also his son a 16 year old were both killed in Obama ordered drone strikes.
   Of course, the Obama defenders will simply say that there is a state of hostilities between Al Qaeda and related groups and the U.S. and just as in warfare one can target and kill the enemy without trial. At the same time the Obama administration does not even regard the term "war on terror" as politically correct while employing the notion of  hostilities as a means to place any suspected terrorist beyond the reach of any basic legal rights.

    Some in the crowd booed Paul as he brought up the drone issue without prompting. However, Paul's position on this matter has been consistent. Many in the American populace are fed up with politicians who pander to them and then go their own merry way after they are elected. Even if people do not like many of Paul's policies they realize that he is different and respect him for that. I have included  a You Tube video with Cenk Uygur of the Young Turks which shows even some liberals give him respect. For more this article..