A new documentary reveals that CIA drone strikes in Pakistan have been carried out by regular U.S. Air Force personnel.
Former U.S. drone pilot Brandon Bryant says:
"... the lie is that it's always been the air force that has flown those missions. The CIA might be the customer but the air force has always flown it. A CIA label is just an excuse to not have to give up any information. That is all it has ever been." (1)
Members of the House can do something very simple to address this. They can co-sponsor the Schiff-Jones bill, H.R.4372, which would require the government to report on who is being killed by drone strikes, including how many civilians. Because the House is on recess, today is a good day to call House offices - you have a better chance of speaking with a staffer who handles the issue.
Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 225-3121 today and ask to be transferred to your Representative's office. When you reach the office, ask if it's possible to speak to the legislative assistant who handles military affairs. Regardless of who you get to speak with, you can say:
I'm calling to urge [your Representative's name] to co-sponsor H.R.4372, the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act. This bipartisan bill would require the government to report on who is being killed by U.S. drone strikes, including how many civilians. The bill has been endorsed by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The American people have the right to know what is being done in our name. You can co-sponsor the bill by contacting Rep. Adam Schiff’s office or Rep. Walter Jones’ office.When you're done, report your call with our easy response form:
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/schiff-call-in
CIA chief John Brennan has claimed that civilian casualties from drone strikes have been "exceedingly rare." The record of independent reporting strongly indicates that John Brennan's claim was not true. But because of the secrecy of the program, the CIA has not been forced to account for the discrepancy between their claims and the record of independent reporting. (2)
Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Walter Jones (R-NC) have introduced legislation (3) – H.R.4372, the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act – to require an annual report on the number of combatants and civilians killed or injured annually by U.S. drone strikes. (4) The Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act has been endorsed by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. (5)
Please take two minutes to call your representative today.
Thanks for all you do to help hold U.S. officials accountable to the rule of law,
Megan Iorio, Chelsea Mozen and Robert Naiman
Just Foreign Policy
References:
1. “CIA's Pakistan Drone Strikes Carried Out by Regular US air force Personnel: Former drone operators claim in new documentary that CIA missions flown by USAF's 17th Reconnaissance Squadron,” Chris Woods, Guardian, April 15, 2014,http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/14/cia-drones-pakistan-us-air-force-documentary
2. “Pass the Drone Strike Transparency Act,” Robert Naiman, Huffington Post, April 9, 2014,http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/pass-the-drone-strike-tra_b_5121353.html
3. “H.R.4372 - To require the President to make publicly available an annual report on the use of targeted lethal force by remotely-piloted aircraft,” http://beta.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/4372/
4. “Reps. Adam Schiff and Walter Jones Introduce Bipartisan Bill Requiring Annual Reporting on Drone Casualties,” April 2, 2014, http://schiff.house.gov/press-releases/reps-adam-schiff-and-walter-jones-introduce-bipartisan-bill-requiring-annual-reporting-on-drone-casualties/
5. “Joint Statement in Support of The Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act,” April 2, 2014,http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/news-item/joint-statement-in-support-of-the-targeted-lethal-force-transparency-act
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