What Explains the Increased Use of Drones Under The Obama Administration in Pakistan Dissertation

Introduction

Drones are actually referred as being the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). As the name suggests, drones do not have any pilot or other flight crew. They are mainly controlled by ground pilots. But, in some rare cases, drones also pursue an already programmed operation. Basically, Drones are used for two purposes: for surveillance and for bombing any particular target. There are certain benefits or plus points associated with Drones. First of all, as mentioned earlier, they are unmanned and, as such, there is no danger of any life being lost. Secondly, the cost of a Drone is much less than an Armed Forces aircraft. Finally, Drones have the capacity to remain airborne for a longer period as compared to a manned aircraft. A lot of time is saved owing to the fact that there are no frequent landings and take-offs. The process of flying a drone entails three phases. In the first phase, a qualified and well trained person takes the Drone to the air (flies) from the conflict precinct. Then a team of technicians keeps a constant vigil over the Drone’s movements on the video screens. A third team maintains continuous contact with the troops at the battle field for regular updates. “Drones are remotely operated by CIA headquarters from Langley, West Virginia, USA or from its bases in Khost, Afghanistan and Pakistan” (Nasir 2012). “The US has two separate ‘squadron’ of armed drones: one run by the US Air Force and the other run by the CIA. Using drones, the USAF Air Force has increased the number of combat air patrols it can fly by 600 percent over the past six years” (Cole et al. 2010). Drones keep flying for long hours over suspected areas and keep on sending images to the base station. As soon as something concrete is noticed, an attack is conducted. “Unmanned aerial vehicles have soared the skies of Afghanistan and Iraq for years, spotting enemy encampments, protecting military bases, and even launching missile attacks against suspected terrorists” (McCullagh 2006).

The invention of drones dates back to a little after the World War II. Initially, drones were designed for doing surveillance and were used by the United States during the Vietnam War, for the purpose of gathering information on intelligence. Through the year 2001, drones were customized to carry armaments and heavy ammunition. Armed Drones were first used in Afghanistan during November 2001. But as far as Pakistan is concerned, the United States started using armed Drones since 2004. The C. I. A. holds the responsibility for the Drone attacks in Pakistan. “The C. I. A. began using drones in Pakistan in 2004, even though the United States was not engaged in a war with that country. Under President Obama, the use of drones in Pakistan has escalated dramatically. Following the attacks in Khost, the C. I. A. increased the attacks to every other day, up from about once a week” (O’connell 2010).

The United States argues that it is appropriate to use Drones to nail dreaded terrorist hideouts and their leaders. But if the humanitarian aspect is looked at, innocent civilians are also killed in such attacks. According to official sources, it is estimated that one third of the people killed in Drone attacks were civilians. But actual body count portrays a different picture, according to which for a single terrorist, about fifty civilians are killed (Cole, Dobbing & Hailwood 2010). According to Akbar Nasir, America successfully put into action its Drones during wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and, recently, in Pakistan. America is following a tactic that involves execution and not detaining the militants.

Political Theories

Defensive Realism

This particular theory is very apt to the topic of this dissertation. The United States is using Drones in Pakistan in order to flush out the extremists who are threatening the security of its citizens. But, at the same time, the actions are threatening the security of the general public of Pakistan. It is quite possible that due to the loss of its citizens’ lives, Pakistan may retaliate in some or the other manner and moreover, “…it is not a good idea to be powerful because when you push towards that direction of acquiring power, other states tend to try to balance against you to try to cut you at the knees” (Troy 2004).

Constructivism

Constructivist theory also relates to the topic of this dissertation. This theory pertains to the effect of ideas on the society. Here, the importance is given to ideas spread by discourses because with the passage of time, such ideas take the shape of faith, conviction and significance which, in turn, gradually become custom and code of conduct for people of the society. This theory relates to this dissertation in the sense that the United States is targeting the extremists by Drone attacks. These extremists are the results of the effect of communal or religious ideas being spread by a group of people through discourses. Such ideas may not be supported by any state or country but they nurture within the society. “Because the social gives meaning to the material, many core concepts, including anarchy, power, national interest, security dilemma, and others, are seen as socially constructed rather than as the ineluctable consequences of system structures” (Holsti). These extremists are threatening the existence of peace and harmony in the United States and, as such, the United States is attacking such extremists just to secure its citizens and their properties. Moreover, Pakistan was considered to give shelter to militants in order to serve its own interests.

Use of Drones during Bush Administration

Immediately after assuming office in 2001, George W. Bush proclaimed the War on Terror. It was supposed to be a military campaign at the international level and included the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The United States, in its endeavor to wipe off terrorism, was supported by the United Kingdom and some other countries. The main motive of War on Terror was to eliminate terrorists, their organizations and their hideouts. In attaining this motive, the Bush administration entered into a coalition with Pakistan (with support from then Pakistan President Parvez Musharraf) and got the authorization of using three of its airbases for use in Operation Enduring Freedom. It is understood that due to the continuous strikes on terrorist hideouts in Afghanistan, the main leaders of the terrorist organizations took shelter in Pakistan, along the Afghanistan border. The Bush Administration was not ignorant of the developments. As such, in 2004, the Bush Administration initialized the use of armed Drones in order to wipe out the terrorist outfits such as Al-Qaeda and Taliban.

The Drone attacks were under the direct control of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States and were part of the War on Terrorism.

The following table shows some of the casualties that happened in Drone attacks during the Bush administration (George W. Bush served as the President of the United States from 20 January 2001 to 20 January 2009):

In addition to ones mentioned in the table, there were several other Drone attacks in which, though there were several casualties, no major terrorist was killed. It is evident from the aforementioned table that the main attacks were made during the latter half of 2008. “The more expansive target set was originally approved in the final months of the Bush administration in late 2008, but has been stepped up under the Obama White House” (CNN 2010).

After the gruesome incident of 11 September 2001, President Bush got full support from the government. The Congress endorsed the American President “to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nationals, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons” (Jewett et al. 2004). This proved to be a shot in the arm for President Bush.

Increase of Drone attacks during Obama Administration

Barack Obama took oath as the President of the United States of America on January 20, 2009. In addition to the various tasks that he was supposed to do, the main and probably the most important one was to apprehend Osama Bin Laden and destroy his terrorist outfit, Al-Qaeda. “The President believes that we need to use all elements of American power to defeat Al-Qaeda, including the strength of our military, intelligence, diplomacy and American justice” (CBSNews 2010). The mission of putting an end to the terrorist activities of Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda was already into full force. Obama had to further strengthen the mission. Ever since Obama assumed office, he has been sincerely after the success of the mission. The Drone attacks increased after he became President. “It was only the second drone strike in Miram Shah since the campaign started in 2004 – the first occurred last November – suggesting that the C. I. A. has expanded its targeting ‘box’ in the tribal belt to include more densely populated areas, which had been previously avoided” (Khan et al. 2012). However, there have been certain incidents like the one involving American official Raymond David that have slowed down the mission. On January 27, 2011, Raymond David had shot two Pakistani nationals and another Pakistani national was killed by a vehicle that had come to rescue Raymond David from the wrath of the crowd. Raymond David was arrested. In order to seek the release of Raymond David, Obama temporarily deferred the Drone attacks. Another incident that forced America to temporarily stop the Drone attacks was the killing of two dozen Pakistani military personnel by the NATO forces towards the end of 2011. After this incident, Drone attacks were stalled for a period of about two months.

Usually America does not talk much about Drone attacks in public. But, recently, “US President Barack Obama confirmed that unmanned drones have regularly struck Pakistan’s tribal areas in his government’s efforts to dismantle what it alleges are Al-Qaeda sanctuaries in the region” (Aljazeera 2012).

This, obviously, gave the terrorists a sigh of relief. In the ensuing paragraphs, the various factors responsible for Drone attacks in Pakistan are discussed in detail. But, before that, let us have a look at the details of Drone attacks during Obama administration. The following table enlists some of the main Drone attacks:

“Following a spike in tensions between the US and Pakistan in the wake of the American raid that killed Osama Bin Laden, the number of drone attacks dropped last year” (Rediff 2012).

The Osama Bin Laden Factor

Osama Bin Laden was the founder of the terrorist outfit, Al-Qaeda. It was during Soviet Union’s war on Afghanistan that Osama was able to set up international contacts with people who were of his Islamist ideology. The response from such contacts instigated him to form Al-Qaeda in the year 1988. The motive of Al-Qaeda was to unite the Muslim world and to keep the foreigners at bay from intervening in the affairs of the Middle Eastern countries. It is noteworthy that during the Afghanistan war, Osama was helped indirectly by America, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. After a lengthy war (1979-1988), the Soviet Union had to accept defeat due to the increasing terrorist activities. Once the war was over, people who assisted Osama went back to their countries throughout the world and this made Al-Qaeda a global terrorist outfit. After having a base in Sudan for about five years (1991-1996), Osama shifted his base to Afghanistan. During these years, American interference in Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia had increased to a great extent. So, Osama pointed his guns towards the Americans.

Since then, Al-Qaeda carried out many attacks aimed at Americans. The September 11 2001 attack on the World Trade Center was a part of Al-Qaeda’s strategy. In the attack, 19 Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airplanes. Two of these planes were flown into the World Trade Centre and one was crashed into Pentagon. The third one crashed in Pennsylvania. The attack was very severe and resulted in the death of 3000 people. “Bin Laden’s name has been linked to a number of incidents that have cost Americans their lives, including the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000 and the destruction of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 and now, he is linked to the recent catastrophic assaults on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon” (Bodansky 2001).

An understanding of the reasons of Osama Bin Laden’s hatred towards America brings out some facts. It is said that Osama Bin Laden was hungry for power. America being the most powerful nation, he could not digest the presence of American troops in Saudi Arabia. His reasoning was that Saudi Arabia being a sacred place, foreigners should not be allowed there. He even went to the extent of opposing the royal family for supporting and allowing the American troops on the holy land. Later on, Osama was forced to leave the country. As such, his hatred for the United States started increasing. Another reason for the hatred was Osama’s being fundamentalist. Obviously, he hated the capitalists and America being a capitalist, was great economic influence over the world. Another reason was America’s control over the oil producing Muslim nations. Osama Bin Laden wanted to establish Islamist governments in all the Muslim nations. But the presence of American troops and the economic influence that America had on these nations prevented Osama from doing so. In such circumstances, Osama thought that the best way to minimize American interference was to attack the innocent American citizens. This is how the story began.

It was on August 23, 1996 that Osama Bin Laden proclaimed war against America. It is called the ‘declaration of war’. In his letter to Muslims all around the world, he urged them to participate in the religious war (Jihad) against America. He also urged Muslims to force out the Americans from the holy place of Saudi Arabia. In the year 1998, major Muslim militants came under the umbrella of Osama Bin Laden and formed an organization called the International Islamic Front for Jihad against the Jews. A fatwa (religious doctrine) was also issued during this time. The fatwa urged Muslims to get rid of Americans whenever and wherever possible.

All such incidents forced America to take stern action against Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden. The Drone attacks were increased and terrorist outfits came under attack in some Muslim countries. “For over seven years, the U. S. government has been using drone attacks in Pakistan. In 2009, President Obama has continued with the Bush Administration’s agenda to fight the Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants by the use of drones in Pakistan. A major concern is that these drone attacks are killing hundreds of innocent civilians in Pakistan” (Murtza 2011). “One mission of the drones was to help locate Osama Bin Laden in conjunction with the CIA…” (Johnson).

Before Osama Bin Laden could fulfill his dream of destroying America, he himself was killed brutally. “Using unmanned planes designed to evade radar detection and operate at high altitudes, the agency conducted clandestine flights over the compound for months before the May 2 assault in an effort to capture high resolution video that satellites could not provide” (Miller 2011). “…two U. S. helicopters flew in low from Afghanistan and swept into the compound…and engaged Bin Laden and his men in a firefight, and killed Bin Laden and all those with him” (Ross et al. 2011).

The Raymond David Factor

Raymond David was an employee of the American consulate in Pakistan. On January 27, 2011, he shot two Pakistani nationals in broad daylight in Lahore. Seeing the anger being developed among the gathered crowd, he called his office and immediately a four wheel drive with some of his associates came to his rescue. Another person was killed under the vehicle. Raymond David was arrested. This is a short story about the incident. But this and some other incidents had great impact on the relation of Pakistan and America. The relation got so sour that Pakistan refrained from attending the Bonn conference. The conference was called to evaluate and assess the prevailing situations in Afghanistan. “Pakistan’s wrath against the CIA after the Raymond Davis case in Lahore early 2011 had bought the US-Pakistan quarrel to a boiling point” (Tribune 2012).

There are different versions of the story related to the incident of Raymond David. According to Raymond David, he killed the two men in order to save his own life. The two were said to be following his car. It is noticeable that the two men who were on a motorbike were carrying pistols. They are being portrayed as robbers. It is understood that Raymond David had taken out money from an ATM and the two men were after the money. But a US diplomat carrying a gun is a matter of grave concern. “The issue of American diplomats or their security detail carrying weapons inside Pakistan was a hot-button subject last year among certain politicians and sections of the media purportedly worried about the country’s sovereignty” (Whatsonsanya 2011).

“Police suspect that the American, who killed three people in Lahore on Thursday, is an undercover agent of an American spy agency, well-placed sources in the Punjab government told The News” (Manzoor 2011).

In order to secure the safe release of Raymond David, Obama administration decided to temporarily abstain from sending any Drones into Pakistan. It is to be thought why America would stop its mission in between just because of an employee of its consulate. There seems to be more in this and not just the consulate factor. Many believe that Raymond David was America’s secret agent. Moreover, the Pakistani media has portrayed the two men killed by Raymond David as being ISI agents. If these two statements are to be believed, the whole story changes. The two supposed ISI agents were following Raymond David because of his apprehensive activities. It is reported that Raymond David was in possession of some objectionable items like a highly sophisticated camera, first-aid gear and a telescope. Doctors who did the postmortem of the two bodies say that the shots were fired from behind. This means that there was no confrontation between Raymond David and the two motorcyclists.

But US officials have a different story to tell. According to them, “Davis is a contractor to the US Government through his company Hyperion Protective Services LLC, registeredin Arizona as providing ‘High Risk Threat Protection’,…He is also a former US soldier” (Woods 2011).

Whatever the reasons and facts, the outcome is that Pakistani people are enraged and their anti-American feelings have gone up. In order to pacify the Pakistani citizens, the Prime Minister said: “I stand with the people of Pakistan on the issue of American citizen Raymond Davis” (as cited in Dawn).

Afghanistan Factor

After the Afghan War ended, some American and NATO forces were stationed in Afghanistan to maintain peace, law and order. The militants, who prior to the war were based in Afghanistan, had taken shelter in Waziristan area of Pakistan once the war started. Waziristan is Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. The area is full of mountains with dense forests. The militants found the area suitable for their hiding. “North Waziristan is one of seven districts in Pakistan’s tribal region along the Afghan border and widely believed to be a haven for the Haqqani network and other militant groups that are fuelling the insurgency in Afghanistan” (Habib 2012). Once the war ended, the militants started attacking the American and NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan. Being on a height, the militants were at an advantage. After carefully studying the situation, American authorities requested the Pakistani authorities to launch ground attacks on the militants. But Pakistani officials said their forces were busy elsewhere. So, America had to think of an alternate in order to tackle with the militants who were posing threat to the American and NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan. That is when the Drone attacks were planned. And once started, America thought of using the Drones to track down militants hiding in Pakistan and kill them. “The usually unacknowledged Central Intelligence Agency’s drone program, an important element of the U. S. counter-terrorism strategy in the region, appeared to have been halted after a NATO cross-border air attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last November, sparking fury in Pakistan” (Mehsud 2012).

Referring to Al-Qaeda and Taliban, Ghanizada wrote that “The two militant groups claim to have incurred casualties to Afghan and NATO troops following missile attacks on the two military bases” (Ghanizada 2012).

America’s point of view

After Obama took the office of America’s President, he maintained the Drone strikes on terrorist outfits in Pakistan. The reason for this was that previous Drone strikes had showed some encouraging results. Many top leaders of Al-Qaeda had been killed in the attacks. The American officials feel that the Drone attacks are a true and befitting reply to the terrorist activities being carried out by Al-Qaeda. In an interview to Greg Bruno, Zenko M (2010) said: “Unmanned drone strikes are an essential tool for killing who provide guidance and operational support for international terrorism. The apparent killing of Al-Yezdi represents an important small victory, given his connections to terrorist plots abroad, and his declarations last summer that Al-Qaeda would use nuclear weapons against the United States.” President Barack Obama said: “A lot of these strikes have been in Pakistan’s tribal areas…For the most part, they’ve been very precise precision strikes against Al-Qaeda and their affiliates and we’re very careful in terms of how it’s been applied” (Buncombe 2012).

Drones have been used in attacks in Pakistan since the year 2004. But since Obama became the American President, figures show a steep increase in the attacks aimed at Al-Qaeda in Pakistan. Available data show that the Drone strikes have almost doubled during the Obama administration as compared to those during Bush administration.

Moreover, the American government has full support of its citizens in carrying out such attacks. Everyone is concerned about the safety of his/her family and property. If terrorists are not contained, people will always have to live in fear of death. So, it can be said that the Drone attacks are a result of self defense and hence are lawful. Harold Koh, who is a legal advisor in the US State Department, argued that since America was facing an armed clash with terrorist outfits, it would be justified to use weapons in self defense. As far as the killing of innocents is concerned, American officials argue that before finalizing any target to kill, a thorough test is carried out which is attended by at least 10 lawyers. These lawyers submit their comments on the target, whether the attack is justified or not. If a majority of the comments suggest that the attack on that particular individual is not justified, the attack is not carried out. According to the US officials, the Drone attacks have been very successful because in March 2009 alone, Drone attacks wiped off nine of the high profile commanders of AL-Qaeda. As a result, the remaining had to take shelter in Quetta and Karachi. But there are certain politicians in the United States who feel that the Drone attacks in Pakistan are not legal and justified. They argue that Pakistan has never initiated an attack on America and, in such situations, it is against the Internal Laws to attack such a country. Moreover, the number of civilians killed is far more than the actual targets. They also argue that the people who operate the Drones are not from the armed forces. They are civilians and, as such, they have no right to launch such attacks. In fact, they should be subjected to prosecution.

But personnel from the US military argue that owing to the dreadful Drone attacks, Al-Qaeda is being gradually disintegrated. Taliban is also not left behind. In this ongoing ruckus, there have been major differences between Al-Qaeda and Taliban. As far as the deaths of civilians are concerned the Obama administration has been advised to take greater precautions so that the loss of civilian lives is minimized. And to pacify the Pakistani government and to impose faith, America has proposed to share the surveillance data. But this might be just a gimmick because the Americans know that Pakistan will leak the information to the terrorists.

It is also understood that American forces are stationed in Afghanistan in order to maintain law and order in the war torn country. Pakistan borders with Afghanistan at Waziristan (Pakistan). Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants use the mountain terrain to stealthily attack American forces in Afghanistan. The American officials have, at various occasions, requested the Pakistani government to launch a ground attack in order to crush the militants. But Pakistan has not taken the requests seriously. “While unpopular among the Pakistani public, the drone strikes have become a weapon of choice for the Obama administration after the Pakistani Army rebuffed pleas to mount a ground offensive in North Waziristan to take on the militants who use the area to strike at American and NATO forces in Afghanistan” (Perlez et al. 2010).

Pakistan’s point of view

The Drone attacks carried out by America in Pakistan are in defiance with the International Laws and hamper Pakistan’s freedom. As has been mentioned earlier, the major loss of lives and property is that of the civilians. This has irked the Pakistani government as much as it has become a matter of grave concern. The Pakistani people are full of anger against the Drone attacks. People lose their near and dear ones and their properties are destroyed. “Pakistan has previously complained that such attacks violate its sovereignty” (BBC 2012).

“The increasing influence of American officials in Pakistan state affairs has always caused an increased anti-American sentiment among Pakistanis. Be it the political influence, drone attacks or alleged presence of ‘secret’ security agencies such as BlackWater!” (Janjua 2011).

It is understood that the Pakistani government might oppose the Drone attacks in public but internally it has connived with the American government and has allowed America to use its airbases for flying the Drones. But if we consider the efforts being made by the Pakistani President in requesting America to stop the Drone attacks, it seems that even the Pakistani government is fed up with the attacks. But the repeated requests have had no change in America’s plans. The Obama administration is bent upon wiping off the terrorists and their hideouts. In an attempt to gain access to the surveillance data, Pakistan requested the American authorities to hand over to them the controls of the Drones. This way they would be able to put an end to the militant menace more effectively. But the request was denied by the American authorities. The reason being that American officials are of the opinion that once the control of Drones is given to the Pakistani authorities, militants will roam freely without any fear.

In an astonishing revelation, Daily Times disputed the general understanding that the people of Waziristan were angered by the attacks carried out by Drones. The fact is contradictory to the common belief. According to Farhat Taj, the fact is that the people of Waziristan are delighted by invent of Drones due to the fact that they are now free from the grasp of the militants of AL-Qaeda and Taliban and also from ISI.

There have been many sides of stories regarding Pakistan government’s reaction on the use of Drones by America. During December 2011, the Pakistani Army Chief is understood to have authorized the shooting down of the Drones. But then, in news, it was revealed that Pakistan had entered into a secret pact with America to again allow US Drones to fly from Pakistani soil.

Whatever has happened has been in the greater interests of Pakistan because due to the Drone attacks, the country has been able to get rid of a few dreaded foes. “The border attack spurred Pakistan’s political parties to form a parliamentary committee to review the U. S. relationship. A decision on whether to permit drone missions is one of the most anticipated elements of the review, which has not been made public” (Lakshmanan 2012).

“However, the attacks have become a source of friction between Washington and Islamabad and have angered many Pakistanis who see them as breach of their sovereignty and the cause of frequent civilian deaths” (Griffiths 2012).

Talking of Al-Qaeda, documents found form Osama Bin Laden’s house, after his death, revealed that Osama was not happy with the Drone attacks. He was worried due to the fact that the Drone attacks were killing his militants faster than he could recruit new ones. As such, the strength of Al-Qaeda was decreasing day by day. In order to get rid of the Drones, Osama had even planned to attack AeroVironment, the manufacturers of Drones.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Terrorism is a global menace and it is very important for governments to adopt counter terrorism measures in order to safeguard the interests of citizens. But this does not mean that armies should trespass into other nations’ territories. And even if any particular nation allows some other nation to use its territory for search operations, it does not mean that the civilians should be put at risk. This is like taking undue advantage. Pakistan did a mistake in allowing American forces to operate their mission. In return, what did America do? Killed innocent civilians in the name of getting rid of militants? This is not done. America says that it is getting rid of global terrorism. But, actually, the country is serving its own interests. Al-Qaeda posed a major threat to its people. Past incidents showed Al-Qaeda’s capabilities. To avoid any future attacks from Al-Qaeda, the country is hunting down Al-Qaeda militants. It is good to eliminate terrorism from the roots but not at the cost of civilians. In order to safeguard the American citizens, American forces are killing innocent Pakistani civilians. “This is a targeted focused effort at people who are on a list of active terrorists, who are trying to go in and harm Americans, hit American facilities, American bases, and so on” (as cited by TheNation 2012). What justice is this? Are Pakistanis not humans? Or are Americans greater human beings? Moreover, if America is so much concerned about eradicating global terrorism, why does it not get involved in other countries where other sects of terrorists are creating havoc? And if at all America is conducting drone attacks in Pakistan, it should take the Pakistani government into confidence and then proceed with the mission. But as reports suggest, Pakistani authorities are requesting America to stop the drone attacks but America is not paying heed. As a result, an anti-America feeling is getting developed among the Pakistani citizens. This may have very bitter and harmful consequences for America.

The government of the United States of America might have a point here because as is the reputation of Pakistan, it would be disastrous to provide Pakistan access to the surveillance data. It is feared that there might be some people who may leak the information and thus alert the target and thereby help the target in fleeing the attack area. All said and done, America should conduct the Drone attacks in a manner that civilian lives are not lost. Pakistan is a densely populated country and as such Drone attacks are bound to have an impact on the civilians.

Another way to tackle with the militants can be diplomatic talks with the Pakistani government. America is a rich country and as such, it can offer aids to Pakistan in lieu of information on militants. Then ground operations can be conducted to apprehend such militants.

There has been sharp criticism of the American Drone attacks in Pakistan. The criticism comes from the esteemed United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). UNHRC was worried about the civilian casualties. According to UNHRC, America had failed in keeping a record of Pakistani civilian deaths due to the American Drone attacks. America was flouting all International laws just to facilitate the achievement of its objectives. UNHRC asked American government to explain the killing of innocent civilians in the Drone attacks. But American authorities have been adamant on not giving any reply. “In the second new report confirming civilian casualties in US drone strikes, Reprieve has filed a major case with the United Nations Human Rights Council” (Woods 2012). “The rapid expansion in the size and scope of the drone campaign as the U. S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been winding down has led to increased criticism from human rights and international law experts, many of whom dispute the legal justification for the program” (DeYoung 2011).

Mixed reactions have been observed from various sections of the Pakistani people. Some feel that the Drone attacks are justified in the sense that at least they are able to live without any fear of Al-Qaeda, Taliban or ISI. But there are some others who believe the Drone attacks as murderous. They feel America is intentionally killing innocent people to prove its supremacy. Such people can not digest the fact that the Pakistani government is helpless in front of America and can do nothing to prevent the killings of innocent Pakistani people.

Another faction of people feels that the numbers of casualties portrayed in different media are not correct. In fact, there are very less civilian casualties. The only ones killed are members of the families of the militants. It is the remaining militants who later claim to be civilians and declare the death toll.

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