Targeted Killing in International Law: Searching For Rights in the Shadow of 9/11

Abstract

“After hundreds of drone strikes, how could the United States possibly still be working its way through a ‘top 20’ list?” This exclamation of comical despair from the Pakistani military Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani raises many questions. His quizzical outburst during a recent meeting with his American counterpart, Navy Admiral Michael Mullen, is a telling encapsulation of the continuous saga of military actions. Cloaked under secrecy, these actions fall outside the prescribed limits of international law. Yet, American drone strikes in sovereign territories have largely been ignored within contemporary discourse. This is predominantly due to the success of military planners in propagating a palatable narrative to the general populace. This narrative is simple. It provides assurance that drone strikes eliminate known terrorists which in turn makes America safer. This simple narrative also alleviates the public’s concerns about human rights violations by emphasizing that the surgical precision of drone