Holder: Executive Branch Reviews Of Targeted Killings Count As ‘Due Process’

Source: TPM
Ryan J. Reilly

The Obama administration believes that executive branch reviews of evidence against suspected al-Qaeda leaders before they are targeted for killing meet the constitution’s “due process” requirement and that American citizenship alone doesn’t protect individuals from being killed, Attorney General Eric Holder said in a speech Monday. 

“Due process and judicial process are not one and the same, particularly when it comes to national security,” Holder said. “The Constitution guarantees due process, not judicial process.”

Broadly outlining the guidelines the Obama administration has used to conduct lethal drone stikes overseas, Holder said the U.S. government could legally target a senior operational al Qaeda leader who is actively engaged in planning to kill Americans if the individual (1) posed an imminent threat of violence; (2) could not feasibly be captured; and (3) if the operation was conducted in line with war principles. 

Such a use of lethal force against that type of individual, Holder said, wouldn’t violate the executive order banning assassinations or criminal statues because such an act would be in “self defense.” In remarks delivered at Northwestern University Law School in Chicago, Holder also said that targeted killings are not “assassinations,” adding that the “use of that loaded term is misplaced” because assassinations are “unlawful killings” while targeted strikes are conducted lawfully.

The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) has so far refused to release a copy of a legal memorandum justifying the targeted killing of the U.S. born Anwar al-Awlaki, who allegedly inspired several attacks or attempted attacks on the U.S. 

While not mentioning Anwar al-Awlaki by name — Holder said he “cannot discuss or confirm any particular program or operation” — he arguably referenced his killing by using the example of a U.S. born al Qaeda leader. Holder said that “citizenship alone does not make such individuals immune from being targeted.”

High-Altitude Surveillance Drones Coming to a Sky Near You

Source: Scientific American
John Villasenor

Last week President Obama signed a sweeping aviation bill that, among other things, will open the skies to “unmanned aircraft systems,” more commonly known as drones. Much of the discussion regarding the coming era of domestic drones has been focused on the many important questions regarding their use at low altitudes. To what extent will it be legal, for example, for drones to hover 300 feet above residential neighborhoods snapping pictures into backyards and windows? What level of human-in-the-loop control is needed to ensure safety in a crowded airspace? And how can we stop terrorists from piloting drones at treetop level towards a target?

But there is another portion of the airspace—the stratosphere—that while mostly empty today, will in the coming years will become increasingly populated by gossamer-like, solar-powered drones turning silent, lazy circles in the sky. These drones will stay aloft for years at a time, running on energy collected during the day using solar panels mounted on paper-thin wings. As their slowly turning propellers push them along at bicycle speeds, arrays of high-resolution cameras on their undersides will record the daily comings and goings of the population of entire cities.

...What, exactly, will these drones be able to see? A lot, as it turns out. They will record the route and speed of every vehicle on the streets. They will observe the movements of individual pedestrians. At night, they will capture the precise moments when the lights in living rooms and bedrooms are turned on and off. The data they acquire, which can be correlated with information from mobile devices and smart meters, will become an important component of the growing digital record of nearly everything we do.

Read Full Article 

Israel inks $1.6 Billion Arms Deal with Azerbaijan

Source: AP
Amy Teibel

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli defense officials on Sunday confirmed $1.6 billion in deals to sell drones as well as anti-aircraft and missile defense systems to Azerbaijan, bringing sophisticated Israeli technology to the doorstep of archenemy Iran.

The sales by state-run Israel Aerospace Industries come at a delicate time. Israel has been laboring hard to form diplomatic alliances in a region that seems to be growing increasingly hostile to the Jewish state.

Its most pressing concern is Iran's nuclear program, and Israeli leaders have hinted broadly that they would be prepared to attack Iranian nuclear facilities if they see no other way to keep Tehran from building bombs.

Iran denies Israeli and Western claims it seeks to develop atomic weapons, and says its disputed nuclear program is designed to produce energy and medical isotopes.

In Jerusalem, Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said Iran's nuclear program will take center stage in his upcoming talks with U.S. and Canadian leaders. Netanyahu is to meet with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Ottawa on Friday and with President Barack Obama in Washington on Monday.

...

It was not clear whether the arms deal with Azerbaijan was connected to any potential Israeli planes to strike Iran. The Israeli defense officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not at liberty to discuss defense deals.

Read Full Article..

Eye of the Storm: Western Plans for Iraq-Style Tension on Pakistan-Iran Border

Source: The Nation
S.R.H Hashmi

The Nation in its February 22 issue, has reported that the United States is putting pressure on Pakistani authorities to allow it to establish intelligence bases in the country’s Balochistan province to gather intelligence on Iran, and this report has been confirmed by two officials from the security agencies and one from diplomatic circles. Furthermore, the resolution introduced in the US Congress to recognize the right of Baloch people to self-determination is part of the pressure tactics to force Pakistan to give in. 

We heard so much about dictator Pervez Musharaf giving in to the US on one telephone call and that this would not have happened had a democratic government been in power then. However, continuation of drone attacks despite unanimous parliamentary resolutions against these as well as unequivocal condemnation by top civilian and military leaders, the Abbottabad operation and subsequent attack of Salalah post that killed 24 soldiers do not quite reassure the public of government’s strength. Of course Salalah attack drew strong response from civilian and military leaders, like stoppage of Nato supplies going through Pakistan, throwing out Americans from Shamsi airbase, and determining new terms of engagement with the US by the parliament. However, we heard that Nato supplies through our airspace resumed while the parliament has still not finalised its recommendations, which is surprising to say the least.  

We have not seen much way of good governance but hope that at least on a matter of such vital importance for Pakistan, the government would take a firm stand and will not accede to requests or even threats from Americans who are no friends of ours and are here to implement their agenda of redrawing the maps of Muslim states as well as depriving us of our nuclear weapons. Allowing the Americans to operate near the Iranian border would be doubly harmful because in addition to their subversive activities in Balochistan, they would successfully draw a wedge between us and friendly Iran. The Americans and their accomplices successfully created tension, between Shia and Sunni communities which have been living together peacefully in Iraq for ages. It would be a shame if we allow them to do the same here and thus cooperate with them in our own undoing and that of our neighbours, in return for a few dollars in aid or otherwise.

'Pakistan-US Ties Reach Point of No Return'

Source: PressTV

Pakistani people spilled onto the streets of the capital, Islamabad, on Monday for another anti-US rally.

Thousands of demonstrators --who were opposed to what they call the US intervention in Pakistan-- chanted "death to America". The protesters described the US as "the biggest enemy" of Pakistan who will be defeated. They also denounced the US assassination attacks on Pakistani soil.

Anti-American sentiment has grown in Pakistan after 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in a US air strike in November. The attack sparked large rallies across the country. Ties between Islamabad and Washington became tense following the attack.

NATO’s Double Game In Libya Under UN Cover Revealed

Source: Pakistan Observer
Akhtar Jamal

Suitcase size drones played decisive role.

Islamabad: A Canadian newspaper has revealed an account of NATO’s double-game in Libya and disclosed how the NATO countries collaborated with each other to topple the Libyan regime and secretly supplied most sophisticated weapons and drones to Libyan rebels.

According to the newspaper, Ottawa Citizen, the NATO states misused the UN embargo of arms and sea-blockage and enforced one-sided sanction while allowing NATO-backed special forces and trainers to slip into Libya via sea. 

The paper also disclosed that dozens of brief-case size drones were also sent to Libya to monitor and track Gadhafi forces and hunt them down.

It said that NATO partners in the Mediterranean Sea enforcing an embargo under authority of the United Nations Security Resolution 1973 allowed weapon supplies without any interception to anti- Gadhafi forces.

The publications recalled while in May of 2011 NATO had set up a ring of 20 warships to enforce a United Nations arms embargo for all sides, while the UN embargo was clearly aimed at preventing the delivery of weapons both to Gadhafi and those fighting him.

The paper added that hundreds of tonnes of ammunition and arms breezed through the blockade, “exposing what critics say was Canada and NATO’s real motive during the Libyan war of regime change under the guise of protecting civilians.”

Drone Industry's Lobbying Plan To Expand Over Domestic Law Enfocement Markets

Source: Republic Report
Lee Fang

Drones are mainly associated with the Predator airships that patrol the Afghanistan sky. But thanks to a bipartisan vote last week, the public can expect 30,000 domestic drones flying over the United States in the next eight years.

The dramatic change in policy, which has raised concerns with everyone from civil liberties groups like the ACLU and Electronic Frontier Foundation to the pilot association and the Independent Institute, as well as conservative think tanks, occurred thanks to an aggressive and well-organized effort by drone makers and their lobbyists.

Yesterday, we reported how the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVS), a drone trade group, actually doubled its recent lobbying expenses. Today, we report on a PowerPoint presentation put together by top AUVS lobbyists Michael Toscano, Mario Mairena, and Ben Gielow. The lobby group — which maintains an official partnership in Congress with Reps. Buck McKeon (R-CA), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), and dozens of other lawmakers — was the driving force behind the domestic drone decision passed last week. In the presentation obtained by Republic Report, there are several fascinating concerns raised by the lobbyists:

– Page 5: Drone lobbyists claimed access to airspace and “Global Conflict – particularly U.S. and allied nation involvement in future conflicts” will “either positively or negatively” influence “market growth” for the industry.

– Page 6: The drone lobbyists take full credit for authoring the expansion of domestic drone use codified in the FAA authorization bill passed last week, noting “the only changes made to the UAS section of the House FAA bill were made at the request of AUVSI. Our suggestions were often taken word-for-word.”

– Pages 10-12: The drone industry eagerly anticipates that civil drone use, including use of drones for “suspect tracking” by law enforcement, will soon eclipse military use of drones. Under a section called “Challenges facing UAS,” the lobbyists listed “Civil Liberties.”

View the presentation below:

Drone Lobby Presentation

View more presentations from lhfang

Drones And New U.S. Global War Policy

Source: Pravda.Ru
Luis Beaton

The U.S. defense secretary, Leon Panetta, recently announced that the government of President Barack Obama will expand its global network of drones, known as Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs), capable of carrying lethal weapons.

This policy is part of plans to cut conventional forces as a consequence of the fiscal imbalance that affects the U.S. economy in recent years, he said to the daily newspaper The Wall Street Journal.

Over the next five years, the United States will reduce the number of military personnel by 92,000 and apply millions in cuts to its budget, the Pentagon chief said.

The country will have fewer soldiers, which will decrease from 562,000 currently, to 490,000, while the Marines also will decrease from 202,000 to 182,000.

The budget plan which will be released this month, includes an increase of 30 percent in the fleet of U.S. drones, according to officials quoted by the Washington Post, in an attempt perhaps to effectively compensate for troop reductions.

The newspaper stated that the Pentagon’s plans are addressed by the mobilization of these devices on bases around the world to operate in missions against other nations in a “remote war,” experts explain.

Industry sources indicate that over 30 billion dollars will be budgeted over the next five years to acquire unmanned planes, five billion during 2012 to increase purchases of equipment that patrols the world on missions of espionage and combat.

Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq, Afghanistan, Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Palestine, Somalia, Libya, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey, among other states, have suffered from incursions by espionage or attacks from drones.

The State Has Declared War On The American People: Infowars Nightly News

Source: Infowars Nightly News

Globalist Controlled News Network Axes Show for Telling The Truth

  

The State Has Declared War on the American People

Source: Infowars
Paul Joseph Watson

With the announcement that 30,000 drones are expected to fill American skies within ten years, the U.S. government has officially declared war on the American people, turning to technology normally used to hunt down insurgents abroad as the whole arsenal of the war on terror is re-focused domestically.

“The Federation Aviation Administration said up to 30,000 drones could be in airspace shared with airliners carrying passengers,” reports UPI.

Once signed by president Obama, the FAA Reauthorization Act allows for the FAA to permit the use of drones and develop regulations for testing and licensing by 2015.

Some types of surveillance drones are already being used by police departments across the country, including in Montgomery County, Texas, where the Department of Homeland Security recently gave the go-ahead for law enforcement in the United States to deploy the ShadowHawk mini drone drone helicopter that has the ability to taze suspects from above as well as carrying 12-gauge shotguns and grenade launchers.

US law enforcement bodies are already using drone technology to spy on Americans. In December, a Predator B drone was called in to conduct surveillance over a family farm in North Dakota as part of a SWAT raid on the Brossart family, who were suspects in the egregious crime of stealing six missing cows. Local police in this one area have already used the drone on two dozen occasions since June last year.

The DHS also recently announced a plan to spend up to $50 million dollars on a spy system that has been used to hunt insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan for the purposes of “emergency and non-emergency incidents” within the United States.

While preparing the use of surveillance drones against Americans, the U.S. government is also keen to characterize a myriad of behaviors and activities, no matter how normal or mundane, as potential indicators of terrorism, encouraging citizens to spy on each other in a chilling throwback to how people were hired as informants under the East German Stasi.

As part of its Communities Against Terrorism program, the FBI is encouraging business owners from across the spectrum to spy on their customers.

Congress Opens US Airspace for Drones

Source: RT

The US Congress has just passed the bill that allows private and commercial use of drones. This entails lots of questions as the aircraft that until now have been used solely by the military and intelligence is now available for an average citizen. How this bill's implementation could harm your privacy and safety is one of the main concerns. To talk more about the implications of the bill, Scott Norton of Harper's Magazine joins RT's Liz Wahl.

Congress Approves 30,000 Spy Drones Over America As US Police State Tightens

Source: The Intel Hub

Tim Watts

Once again, another shocking story that threatens the personal privacy of US citizens has been kept from us by our politicians and the mainstream media.

Did you know that a bill, HR 658, the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act, has just passed both the House and the Senate which authorizes the use of 30,000 spy drones over America by the year 2015? Like the anti-Posse Comitatus NDAA legislation that passed in November, this bill was not widely reported by the mainstream corporate media.

Do not feel bad for not knowing about this, because, similar to the anti-Constitutional NDAA legislation, they purposefully tried to hide this from the American public. The corporate controlled mainstream media was once again complicit and was an integral accessory in this crime against “We the People.” The corporate mainstream media failed us all miserably once again.

Think about the enormity of this for a second… 30-THOUSAND drones flying overhead, surveying the US. If you divide that by 50 states, that is 600 drones per state! Most states don’t have even one-third of that in counties, so 600 drones, or more per state is a bit overwhelming. And considering that some state are very small, such as Rhode Island and Connecticut, it won’t take that many to spy on those diminutive territories, leaving far more drones to cover the larger states.

Drones and Deaths - News Analysis

Source: PressTV Global

Press TV Global discusses President Obama's recent admission of the previously unacknowledged drone strikes in Pakistan which demonstrate a clear violation of international law. Assassination drone strikes were initiated under the Bush administration and escalated by the Obama administration. Confirmed drone strikes have been reported in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and Somalia. Pakistani sources report an average of 50 civilian casualties for every one militant killed by drone strikes. An investigation by the London based Bureau of Investigative Journalism has found that attacks in Pakistan alone have killed 775 civilians including nearly 170 children since 2004.

DHS To Launch Insurgent-Tracking Drones Inside America

Source: Prison Planet
Paul Joseph Watson

Technology used to hunt enemy combatants in Afghanistan will be used for “non-emergency incidents” within the U.S.

The Department of Homeland Security plans to spend up to $50 million dollars on a spy system that has been used to hunt insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan for the purposes of “emergency and non-emergency incidents” within the United States.

The DHS is seeking four contractors to provide “aerial remote sensing” services, using LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) technology fitted to drones or manned aircraft that will provide surveillance capability for “homeland security missions,” as well as “management of emergency incidents by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regional offices, joint field offices and by state and local government.”

“DHS believes these airborne images are essential for homeland defense missions, such as planning for National Special Security Events (Super Bowls or a national political conventions come to mind); enhancing border, port and airport security; as well as performing critical infrastructure inventories and assessments,” reports Government Security News, adding that the technology will be used for “emergency and non-emergency incidents nationwide.”

PAKISTAN: ‘CIA drones deliberately target innocent people’

Source: Global Research and The News International
Noor Aftab

Speaking publicly for the first time on the controversial CIA drone strikes, Obama claimed last week they were used strictly to target terrorists. However the new report counters this claim, with international law specialists fiercely positing that the strikes amount to little more than state-sanctioned extra-judicial executions, and going on to question just how the US government would react if another state such as China or Russia started taking similar "justified" action against those they declared enemies.

The upsurge in Washington's unmanned war has been so dramatic that the US now has 7,000 drones in operation, with 12,000 more on the ground, while not a single new manned combat aircraft is under research or development at any western aerospace company.

ISLAMABAD: In what can only be described as a gross violation of the Geneva Convention, the CIA-sponsored drone campaign in Pakistan has killed dozens of innocent civilians involved in either rescuing injured victims or partaking in funerals.

According to a report published by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism with the Sunday Times, between 282 and 535 civilians, including 60 minors, have been credibly reported as killed as a result of drone strikes since US President Barack Obama took office three years ago.

“A three-month investigation including eyewitness reports has found evidence that at least 50 civilians were killed in follow-up strikes when they had gone to help victims," affirmed the report. It went on to state that "More than 20 civilians have also been attacked in deliberate strikes on funerals and mourners."

Speaking publicly for the first time on the controversial CIA drone strikes, Obama claimed last week they were used strictly to target terrorists. However the new report counters this claim, with international law specialists fiercely positing that the strikes amount to little more than state-sanctioned extra-judicial executions, and going on to question just how the US government would react if another state such as China or Russia started taking similar "justified" action against those they declared enemies.

Drones for Peace, Scary Charts, Morality Pills - New World Next Week

Source: Corbett Report and Media Monarchy

Welcome back to http://NewWorldNextWeek.com – the video series from Corbett Report and Media Monarchy that covers some of the most important developments in open source intelligence news. This week:

WAR OR NO WAR IN IRAQ? Drones Over Iraq: When is a Pullout not a Pullout?

Source: Global Research
Felicity Arbuthnot

First the world was sold imaginary weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, General Colin Powell, at the United Nations in February 2003, asserting: “My colleagues, every statement I make today is backed up by sources, solid sources. These are not assertions. What we're giving you are facts and conclusions based on solid intelligence.”

Now it seems the world is sold a withdrawal from Iraq which was not quite what it seemed, as presented by the Panetta-Obama-fest in the Baghdad, Fort Bragg speeches of just six weeks ago. At Fort Bragg: "The war in Iraq will soon belong to history …” said the President. 

Well, not quite. 

In an interesting sleight of hand, the State Department, rather than the Pentagon, is operating a fleet of surveillance drones over Iraq. 

In: “ … the latest example of the State Department’s efforts to take over the functions in Iraq that the military used to perform.”(i) 

Further, the near Vatican City sized US Embassy in Baghdad is protected by five thousand mercenaries and has a further staff of eleven thousand, a large number, seemingly in a “military advice” capacity, training Iraqi forces – a nation that, ironically, nine years ago the US and UK cited as having a military capability not alone a threat “to the entire region”, but to the West. 

Little noticed has been that the State Department has been operating drones in Iraq since last year. Additionally when “Embassy” staff travel, they are escorted by helicopters, frequently with machine gun toting mercenaries “tethered to the outside.” Another Nisour Square massacre (176h September 2007) waiting to happen. 

The Pentagon-operated drones, it seems, went out by the front door and returned through the State Department back door. 

U.S. to Send Floating Base to Mideast for Quick Strikes

Source: WSJ
Nathan Hodge and Julian Barnes

WASHINGTON—Within the president’s defense-budget plan is funding for an intriguing new item: a floating drone base that also could be used as a launching pad for commandos.

The vessel—called an “afloat forward staging base”—would be a platform that could be configured to carry and refuel small patrol boats, helicopters or pilotless aircraft.

Within the president’s new defense budget plan is funding for an intriguing new item: a floating drone base that also could be used as a launching pad for commandos. Nathan Hodge has details on The News Hub.

 

It would also give the U.S. military the ability to stage a small strike force offshore—without obtaining a permission slip from another country for access to a land base.

Details are still emerging, but the project offers insight into how the Obama administration envisions a military that in some ways is more lethal even as it contracts.

Plans for the specialized vessel fit neatly with the Obama administration’s plans to grow special-operations forces, while slimming down conventional forces such as the Army and Marine Corps.

Senior officials want to provide military commanders with affordable sea-base options without necessarily sending a big-deck aircraft carrier and a full complement of escort ships.

A defense official said the floating staging base was more like a freighter that would be outfitted for different kinds of missions, from countering mines to launching remotely piloted aircraft. It also could be used as a platform for launching commando operations.

The official said one option for the ship is a version of the Mobile Landing Platform, a logistics ship that is being built by General Dynamics NASSCO, a San Diego-based shipyard owned by General Dynamics Corp. General Dynamics didn’t respond immediately to requests for comment.

US Resumes Drone Attacks in Pakistan

Source: FARS News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- More people were killed in the US drone attacks in Pakistan after security officials confirmed that at least five people were killed in two strikes carried out by a US drone in the Pakistani North Waziristan tribal region. 

Security officials said on Monday that the American drone targeted a vehicle and a house with two missiles, killing five people at Degan village near Miranshah, the main town of North Waziristan on the Afghan border.

The death toll is expected to rise, and the rescue operation is underway in the area.

The US has resumed its drone operations after it halted the CIA-operated strikes in November 26, 2011, when 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in NATO attacks on two Pakistani military border checkpoints in Mohmand agency.

The use of unmanned armed aircraft over Pakistan has been a sore point with the public and Pakistani politicians, who describe them as violations of sovereignty that produce unacceptable civilian casualties.

Sixty-four US missile strikes were reported in Pakistan's tribal belt last year, down from 101 reported in 2010.

The US refuses to discuss drone strikes publicly, but the program has dramatically increased during the Obama administration.

But the missile strikes fuel widespread anti-American resentment, especially high since the deadly US air strikes on November 26.

Islamabad is now reviewing its entire alliance with the US and has kept its Afghan border closed to NATO supply convoys for two months. 

Dr. Joseph Farrell's Thoughts on the US Drone that Crashed in Iran

Source: Giza Death Star
Dr. Joseph P. Farrell

Well, I depart from my usual practice of talking about a particular article or video today, to present some thoughts about the drone that recently “crashed” in Iran. Let’s back up to the story via the context. First we had the death of Osama Bin Laden, whose body, let us recall, was quickly buried at sea. That’s called tampering with the evidence. We are simply asked to take the government’s word for it, not to mention there were stories in the media long before that he may have died. Then there was the matter of the Iranian used car salesman plotting with the Iranian government to commit acts of terrorism. Well, that one was in my opinion designed to beat the war drums for a strike on Iran. Don’t get me wrong here. The government of Iran is nuts. What other country has as a component of its very national constitution the mandate to export jihad and to annihilate an entire nation? But the car salesman story was a non starter. It quickly fizzled in its utility for hyping the war fever.

Then came the drone, which let us recall was first reported as having crashed, until the Iranian government showed off its “crashed drone” which looked to be in pretty fine condition. Then we were fed the cock-and-bull story that it had a malfunction and “glided” to a landing.

Now, I am having difficulty with all this and I hope you are too. It seems silly to me that such advanced technology would not have some sort of self-destruct mechanism. Now maybe it doesn’t. I don’t know. The military has done stupid things before, and it wouldn’t surprise me. Maybe it does, and it “malfunctioned.”

But all this is merely prelude, for however the drone got there, the fact of the matter is that it is there, and there under circumstances that are all too suspicious, in my humble opinion. The question is, why, and who is behind it, for it seems to me that someone wanted Iran to have this drone. So, working with that hypothesis, the question is, who and why?