Stop the U.S. government's secret drone war

I got this from Amnesty International: 

http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?c=6oJCLQPAJiJUG&b=6645049&aid=518635&msource=W1210EASHR01


Dear Tracy,

In the recent presidential debates, we've heard from the candidates on domestic issues like jobs, the economy and immigration. But there are a lot of human rights topics left to cover in tonight's foreign policy debate. What will President Obama and Governor Romney say about drones?

There are many things we don't know about U.S. drone policy, for example, the government's rules of engagement for drone attacks. Drone missions and strategy operate under a shroud of secrecy. But what we do know is scary -- the deliberate killing of individuals deemed by the U.S. government to be terrorism suspects, far from any recognized battlefield and without charge or trial, raises grave concerns that the U.S. is committing extrajudicial executions in violation of international human rights law.

Tell the Obama administration to come clean about its drone policy and put an end to unlawful killings with drones.

Both presidential candidates have spoken in favor of drones, which have been depicted as a technologically advanced, precision tool for targeting suspects in remote areas.

But as the mounting civilian casualties demonstrate, under U.S. policy, anyone can be targeted as a possible enemy or simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The people of Pakistan know this all too well. A recent joint report from Stanford and NYU, Living Under Drones: Death, Injury and Trauma to Civilians from US Drone Practices in Pakistan, details story after story of civilians -- often children -- killed or seriously injured in U.S. drone attacks. The accounts are chilling.

Shockingly, the CIA reportedly operates under the "guilty until proven innocent" assumption that any male of military age in Pakistan is a potential drone target, unless intelligence has shown otherwise.¹

Drone strikes reflect a "global war" mentality that has been passed on from the Bush administration to the Obama White House. But the whole world is not a battlefield, where lethal force can be used without regard for international human rights and humanitarian law. This reckless approach to national security policy must end now.

Not in our name. Demand that the U.S. government stop the unlawful drone killings in Pakistan and around the globe. Human rights must come first.

Sincerely,

Suzanne Nossel
Executive Director
Amnesty International USA

P.S. "Drones" is just one of the key human rights words on our Debate Bingo cards. Don't forget to play along during tonight's presidential debate, and join the conversation with fellow Amnesty activists online!