Wrnseto's List: Debate Drone Strike

• Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the U.S. began using drones against the Taliban, al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups in countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Yemen.
• One advantage of drones is that they can be deployed for long periods of time over hostile terrority until the location of the target is spotted.
• In 2010, President Obama authorized the use of a drone strike in Yemen to kill Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen accused of being a terrorist.
• Proponents credit drone strikes with the killing of many of the top commanders of the Taliban and al-Qaeda and argue that they are a legal form of self-defense for the U.S. Those in favor also argue that targeted strikes reduce the number of civilian and U.S. soldier casualties. Opponents maintain that targeted strikes violate international law because they are being used outside of combat zones. Additionally, targeted killings violate the constitutional guarantee of due process, kill innocent civilians and might also lead to more violence.

• Targeted strikes are illegal, unethical and may lead to increased terrorist violence.
• Targeted strikes are a legal, ethical and effective way to fight terrorism.

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• Despite President Barack Obama's recent call to reduce the United States' reliance on drones, they will likely remain his administration's weapon of choice.
• Obama has signed off on over 400 of them in the last four years, making the program the centerpiece of U.S. counterterrorism strategy.
• The drones have done their job remarkably well: by killing key leaders and denying terrorists sanctuaries in Pakistan, Yemen, and, to a lesser degree, Somalia, drones have devastated al Qaeda and associated anti-American militant groups. And they have done so at little financial cost, at no risk to U.S. forces, and with fewer civilian casualties than many alternative methods would have caused.
• They claim that drones kill thousands of innocent civilians, alienate allied governments, anger foreign publics, illegally target Americans, and set a dangerous precedent that irresponsible governments will abuse.
• since Obama has been in the White House, U.S. drones have killed an estimated 3,300 al Qaeda, Taliban, and other jihadist operatives in Pakistan and Yemen.

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