Lukas Olynyk

Should the US agree to suspend drone attacks in

Pakistan?

Nature of the Issue TodaySeries of attacks in Northwest Pakistan using drones

since 2004Approved and increased by President Obama when he

took officeDrone attacks used against Pakistani Taliban and other

alleged militants which secretly earned favor and approval from the Pakistani government and intelligence – although publically condemning them as well

Many in Pakistan, including military personnel, protest drone attacks since at times, civilians are killed and its an infringement of its sovereignty, i.e. US military intervention

Controversial since attacks are in a nation that has never attacked the US

First used in 2004 and currently being used todayAttacks increased over the years killing between 1200

and 2000 people with approximately 200 drone strikes in all – supposedly mostly alleged terrorists or militants but civilians have been killed as well

Bush administration used them as a weapon of choice for the War on Terror and they’ve continued under Obama’s administration

Pakistani government has not only secretly shared information with the US but has also opened up some of its air force bases for drone use

Drone attacks thought to be extremely successful – according to the US – against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda

Past Developments

October 2, 2010: US drones launch two separate strikes killing 17 militants. In the first attack drones fired two missiles at a house in Datta Khel killing 9 militants including 4

foreigners. The dead were members of the Badar Mansur group, which is closely affiliated with Al Qaeda. Four hours later another strike occurred in the same area on a convoy of

vehicles and a house killing another 8 militants.October 4, 2010: US drones strike a mosque in Mirali, North Waziristan, reportedly killing

8 suspected militants of German nationality .October 6, 2010: Two US drone strikes by Miran Shah, North Waziristan, kill a total of 11

militants .October 7, 2010: A US drone strike on a compound in North Waziristan kills 5 militants,

included one of the Al Qaeda leaders Atiyah Abd al-Rahman .October 8, 2010: US drone strikes by Miran Shah, North Waziristan, kill a total of 6

militants according to an unnamed intelligence official, who was not authorized to speak to the media .

October 10, 2010: Drones fire 4 missiles on 2 vehicles and kill at least 8 suspected militants in the Shewa District of North Waziristan .

October 13, 2010: Drone attacks kill 11 militants in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan .

October 15, 2010: Two US drone strikes kill 13 suspected militants. The first drone strike killed six suspected militants in North Waziristan's Machi Khel area. Officials said two missiles hit an alleged militant vehicle. Later this day the second drone strike killed 7

suspected militants in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan .October 18, 2010: A drone strike in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan kills 6

militants .October 27, 2010: Two US drone strikes 12 hours apart killed 7 militants. The first strike

was on a house of militant Nasimullah Khan which killed 4 militants. The second strike was on a vehicle in Datta Khel kill which killed 3 militants .

October 28, 2010: A US drone strike in the Datta Khel area kills 7 militants .

November 1, 2010: US-operated drones fired four missiles at a house in the Mir Ali District of North Wazaristan, killing five or six suspected militants .

November 3, 2010: US drones launch three separate attacks killing 13 militants. In the first attack, drones fired two missiles at a vehicle in the Qutab Khel area of Miran Shah killing 5 Uzbek militants. In the second attack, missiles struck a house and a vehicle in

Khaso Khel village, near Mir Ali, killing 4 militants. In the third attack, four missiles were fired hitting a vehicle in Pai Khel village in Datta Khel town, killing 4 militants .

November 7, 2010: Two US drone strikes kill a total 13 or 14 militants in the Miran Shah area of North Waziristan. In the first attack, drones struck a house and a vehicle in the town

of Ghulam Khan, north of Miran Shah killing 9 militants. The second attack occurred an hour later in which drones stuck several vehicles in the neighboring town of Datta Khel,

killing 4 militants .November 11, 2010: A US drone strike kills 6 suspected militants in North Waziristan. The

militants were reportedly Haqqani Network fighters returning from operations in Khost Province, Afghanistan .

November 13, 2010: A US drone strike kills five people in the village of Ahmad Khel in the Mir Ali area in North Waziristan. A Geo News correspondent reported from the attack site

that the deceased seemed to be ordinary citizens, not terrorists .November 16, 2010: Four drone-fired missiles hit a house and vehicle in Bangi Dar village

of North Waziristan, killing 15 to 20 people, possibly including civilians .November 19, 2010: One US drone strike kills 3 suspected militants in the region of North

Waziristan .November 21, 2010: A US drone strike near Miran Shah, North Waziristan, kills 6

suspected militants .November 22, 2010: A US drone strike fired missiles at a car and a motorcycle in North

Waziristan killing 5 alleged militants .November 26, 2010: A US drone strike fired missiles at a vehicle in North Waziristan

killing 4 alleged militants .November 28, 2010: US drone missiles strike a vehicle in Hasan Khel village, around 30

kilometers east of Miranshah. Initial reports indicated the strike killed 3 or 4 militants. Local officials, however, later reported that the suspected militants had survived the strike

by fleeing the targeted vehicle after the first missile missed .

This would be a continuation of an already set pattern in US drone attacks in Pakistan

Exponential increases of drone attacks in Pakistan over the past 6 years

Cripple Taliban and Al-Qaeda outposts, hideouts, etc.

The enemy is still strong and still uses its tactics to harm innocents, the only way to fight in an asymmetric war such as this is with these drones

The Pakistani government supports us

Solution 1 – Increased Drone Attacks

Attacks should be more strategic and pinpointed

We should research the areas of potential strikes to make sure the dangerous, alleged terrorists and civilian militants are the only ones who would be harmed

We would still be able to decimate many strongholds of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda without getting out of hand

Drone attacks have been increasing year to year, slippery slope

Solution 2 – Decreased Drone Attacks

We should indefinitely suspend drone attacks in Pakistan

Different statistics on civilians killed coming from Pakistan than from the US – much higher in statistics from Pakistan

Pakistan sovereign nation and an ally of the US yet we continue to attack its territory, not cool

Not our war

Solution 3 – Suspend Drone Attacks

Decreased drone attacks would allow us to not only continue facilitating the Pakistani government’s war against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, but would allow the US to strike more strategic and important territories

Pakistani government supports the attacksWe’ve already begun to help and some

positive outcomes have transpired

Solution 2 Most Viable Option

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/world/asia/28drones.html

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/12/01/wikileaks.pakistan.drones/

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/11/04/3056580.htm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11458921

Bibliography