Chris Woods - Sudden Justice: Americas Secret Drone Wars

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Chris Woods 2015

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ISBN 9780190202590
eISBN 9780190202613

For my family.

Always there.

VIEW TO A KILL: ARMED DRONES ON THE BATTLEFIELD

BIRTH OF A PREDATOR: THE ORIGINS OF LETHAL DRONES

THE RISE OF TARGETED KILLING: YEMEN AND PALESTINE

THE CAULDRON: IRAQ, 20032011

THE OCCASIONAL ASSASSIN: BUSH IN PAKISTAN

THE ENEMY WITHOUT: WESTERN CITIZENS KILLED BY DRONES

OBAMAS OBSESSION: AFPAK

GAME FACE ON: THE INTIMACY OF REMOTE KILLING

AN ABSENCE OF TRANSPARENCY: YEMEN AND SOMALIA

THE LONG ROAD HOME: AFGHANISTAN AND PAKISTAN

THE INCONSTANT VALUE OF A CIVILIAN LIFE

COUNTERMEASURES AND CRITIQUES

My particular thanks are due to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, the London-based not-for-profit which funded and supported my investigations into the use of armed drones over a 30-month period. In particular, I would like to thank Alice Ross, my co-reporter on a number of investigations, and Jack Serle for his excellent assistance and data analysis. Thanks must also go to former editor Iain Overton and to deputy editor Rachel Oldroyd. My gratitude as well to Manuela Lanza for her work on the death of Raquel Burgos Garcia; to Nina Schick for her forensic unpacking of German deaths in Pakistan; and to Emma Slater for her commendable work on an Iranian TV stations faked drone strike claims. While I draw heavily on the data and research of the Bureau here, the invaluable work of the New America Foundation and Long War Journal in mapping and scrutinizing US covert drone strikes also deeply informs this book.

In Pakistan I was able to draw on the advice and assistance of journalists Rahimullah and Mushtaq Yusufzai. Their courage and determination, along with that of many other Pakistani and Western journalists and researchers in the region, helps ensure our better understanding of those events some would wish remained secret. Lawyer Mirza Shahzad Akbar has also been patient in the face of my many questions over the years, and Christopher Rogers was kind enough to share details of his time in Islamabad. I also received the generous assistance of many present and former senior Pakistani military and intelligence officials, and while many must remain anonymous I would particularly like to thank former ISI Brigadier Asad Munir for helping me better understand USPakistani counterterrorism cooperation after 9/11. Lieutenant General Asad Durrani, former head of the ISI, was also kind enough to share his views during a London trip. The assistance of the Pakistan militarys media office, the ISPR in facilitating my field trips to South Waziristan and Swat was much appreciated, and I would also like to thank Channel 4 News foreign editor Nevine Mabro for enabling that trip. My particular thanks go to Tahir Khan, a reporter with the BBCs Pashtun Service who was my companion and translator in both Waziristan and Swat.

In Yemen I benefited greatly from the insights of many fine specialists, and I would particularly like to thank reporters Iona Craig, Saeed al-Batati, and Hakim Almasmari. Vivian Salama not only shared with me her insights from a research trip to Yemen, but has also generously allowed the reproduction of two of her striking photographs for this book. I am grateful too for the work of those NGOs seeking to understand counterterrorism operations inside the countryoften at some risk to their own staff. In particular, my appreciation goes to HOOD, to the Alkarama Foundation, to Reprieves local team, and to Letta Tayler and her colleagues at Human Rights Watch.

The assistance of USAFs Book Support Program has been much appreciated, as has that of Lieutenant General Bob Otto, the present head of USAFs ISR Agency, and his staff. My thanks too to Air Combat Command and to Langley AFB for its hospitality. In particular, I would like to thank Colonel Lourdes Duvall, Vice Commander of the 480th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing, who with her team so patiently explained the complexities of modern battlefield intelligence-gathering. USAF clinical psychologist Dr. Wayne Chappelle was generous with his insights into stress among drone operators. I would also like to thank the many serving and former intelligence analysts, pilots, sensor operators, mission controllers, and other key RPA personnel (some of whom have asked to remain anonymous) who gave so much of their time. Many of these are Special Forces personnel, sharing their experiences for the first time. I have also benefited greatly from the knowledge and insights of many former US military, intelligence, and diplomatic officials with a deep knowledge of remotely piloted aircraft (RPA). These include General Chuck Wald, Lieutenant General Dave Deptula, Major General Kenneth Israel, Major General James Poss, and Major General George Harrison. I also much appreciated the helpful notes provided by the Predators inventor Abe Karem. State Department officials providing their wise counsel include former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and Ambassador Cameron Munter, and Professor Lawrence Wilkerson.

For their invaluable aid in facilitating my understanding of Britains own armed RPA programme, my thanks go to the Royal Air Force. Greatly appreciated too have been the gatherings organized by Sir Mike Aaronson and his team at the University of Surreys Centre for International Intervention. Professor Anatol Lieven of Kings College London was also generous with his expertise, while Professor David Cortright at the University of Notre Dames Kroc Institute in Chicago has my thanks for his insights and patience. Professor Eyal Weizman and Dr. Susan Schuppli of Forensic Architecture were also kind enough to share their important modeling of the physical impact of armed drone strikes from an early stage. Professor Dapo Akande at Oxford University, Professor Amos Guiora at Utah and Professor Greg McNeal at Pepperdine have all been generous with their time. So too have been the law centers of Stanford and NYU, and especially Professors Sarah Knuckey and Jim Cavallaro; while Dr. Naureen Shah (now with Amnesty International) has also been a great help. UN special rapporteurs Ben Emmerson QC and Professor Christof Heyns were both kind enough to allow me to observe key aspects of their investigations for the United Nations. My thanks are also due to their legal team, including Iain Morley QC, Annie ORiley, and Leonard Cuscoleca. I would also like to thank Norwegian documentary film-maker Tonje Hessen Schei and her team, who for their film Drone followed my work for three years, and also allowed me access to their own findings. The investigation into the role of the CIAs secret drone squadron described here was very much a joint enterprise.