{"id":31571,"date":"2013-07-08T12:00:41","date_gmt":"2013-07-08T11:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=31571"},"modified":"2015-05-06T09:00:09","modified_gmt":"2015-05-06T08:00:09","slug":"six-month-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2013\/07\/six-month-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/","title":{"rendered":"Six-Month Update: US Covert Actions in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>Bureau data suggests the CIA is killing fewer people in each strike in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/01\/03\/obama-2013-pakistan-drone-strikes\/\" title=\"Obama 2013 Pakistan drone strikes\"  target=\"_blank\">Pakistan<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Lack of official transparency means it remains unclear who is carrying out strikes in\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/01\/03\/yemen-reported-us-covert-actions-2013\/\" title=\"Yemen: reported US covert actions 2013\"  target=\"_blank\">Yemen<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>No reports of US operations in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2012\/02\/22\/get-the-data-somalias-hidden-war\/\" title=\"Somalia: reported US covert actions 2001-2013\"  target=\"_blank\">Somalia<\/a>\u00a0but al Shabaab continues to launch attacks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Pakistan<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>June 2013 actions<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Total CIA strikes in June: <b>1<\/b><br \/>\nTotal killed in US strikes in June:<b>\u00a07-9<\/b>, of whom <b>0<\/b> were reportedly civilians<\/p>\n<p><b>All actions 2004 \u2013 June 30 2013<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Total Obama strikes:\u00a0<b>318<\/b><br \/>\nTotal US strikes since 2004:\u00a0<b>370<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed: <b>2,548-3,549<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed:\u00a0<b>411-890<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed:\u00a0<b>168-197<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported injured:\u00a0<b>1,177-1,480<\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/01\/03\/obama-2013-pakistan-drone-strikes\/\"  target=\"_blank\">For the Bureau\u2019s full Pakistan databases click here<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>A single CIA drone strike hit Pakistan in June. The attack, on June 7, killed seven including\u00a0<b>Mutaqi <\/b>(aka\u00a0<b>Bahadar Khan<\/b>), described by some sources as a \u2018key Pakistan Taliban commander\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>The attack came two days after new prime minister <b>Nawaz Sharif<\/b>\u00a0used his inaugural address to demand an end to US drone strikes. After the attack, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned deputy US ambassador <b>Richard Hoagland<\/b> to protest.<\/p>\n<p>Tensions in the region\u00a0continue to grow after the killing of Pakistan Taliban\u00a0(TTP) deputy leader\u00a0<b>Wali Ur Rehman<\/b>\u00a0in a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/06\/03\/may-2013-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/\"  target=\"_blank\">drone attack in May<\/a>\u00a0hardened the stance of the\u00a0militant group.\u00a0Rehman\u2019s\u00a0death\u00a0dashed hopes of peace talks between the militant group and Pakistan authorities in Islamabad. The TTP has since claimed that a spate of bloody attacks were in retaliation for Rehman\u2019s death, including the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thenews.com.pk\/article-106461-Ten-tourists-killed-at-Nanga-Prabat-base-camp,-Gilgit-Baltistan\"  target=\"_blank\">murder of ten climbers<\/a> and their guide in the mountainous north of the country.<\/p>\n<p>While peace negotiations have faltered in Pakistan, across the border the US is trying to\u00a0negotiate\u00a0peace talks with the\u00a0Afghan Taliban. The militant group opened its political office in Qatar \u2013 a move that provoked a visceral response from <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/world-asia-22982585\"  target=\"_blank\">the Afghan government<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><b>Six-monthly trends<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Much has been written about the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2013\/06\/06\/world\/asia\/pakistan-nawaz-sharif-election-drone-strikes.html?_r=0\"  target=\"_blank\">steep decline<\/a> in the number of US drone strikes in Pakistan:\u00a0strikes are now at their lowest level since early 2008.\u00a0The number of\u00a0reported civilian deaths\u00a0is also\u00a0at an all-time low, a trend\u00a0first high-lighted by the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2012\/07\/02\/june-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/\"  target=\"_blank\">Bureau in 2012<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The average number of people being killed in each drone strike has fallen sharply too, an analysis of the Bureau\u2019s data shows. An average of four people now die in each attack \u2013 just a third of the rate in the first six months of 2010.<\/p>\n<p>Research by the Bureau <a href=\"http:\/\/civiliansinconflict.org\/uploads\/files\/publications\/The_Civilian_Impact_of_Drones_w_cover.pdf\"  target=\"_blank\">and others<\/a>\u00a0indicates that some of the highest casualties in the US drone war occur when the CIA carries out \u2018signature strikes\u2019 \u2013 attacks on groups of men judged to be behaving in a suspicious manner.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_31572\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/People-killed-per-strike-603x395.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-31572\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-31572\" alt=\"The rate CIA drones kill people per strike has continued to fall since the first half of 2009.\" src=\"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/People-killed-per-strike-603x395-300x196.png\" width=\"300\" height=\"196\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/People-killed-per-strike-603x395-300x196.png 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/People-killed-per-strike-603x395.png 603w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-31572\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The rate CIA drones kill people per strike has continued to fall since the first half of 2009.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The smaller death tolls seen in recent months suggest\u00a0the CIA may be limiting its use of the controversial tactic.<\/p>\n<p>The Bureau showed its analysis in the graph above to law professor Rosa Brooks who\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.judiciary.senate.gov\/pdf\/04-23-13BrooksTestimony.pdf\"  target=\"_blank\">recently testified<\/a> before a Senate committee on the constitutional and counterterrorism implications of the US drone wars. She\u00a0said the White House\u2019s use of drones has come under pressure and the drop in the casualty rate is \u2018almost certainly an effort to respond to the criticisms\u2019. However, she added, this is \u2018the optimistic theory\u2019. \u2018The less optimistic theory would simply be they have started running out of targets.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>The first half of 2013 began with a flurry of strikes in January before the CIA scaled back operations. This\u00a0coincided with a move by the\u00a0White House\u00a0to more transparency about the drone programme. In February new CIA <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/05\/23\/obama-frames-covert-drone-war-as-necessary-evil\/\"  target=\"_blank\">director John Brennan<\/a>\u00a0discussed the Agency\u2019s targeted killing programme with the US Senate during his confirmation hearing. And in May President Obama\u00a0for the first time acknowledged US drone strikes have killed civilians, in a major foreign policy speech.<\/p>\n<p>The past six months have been bookended with the death of two significant militant leaders. <b>Maulvi Nazir<\/b>, one of the most senior commanders of the so-called \u2018Good Taliban\u2019, was killed in January. And <b>Wali Ur Rehman<\/b>, deputy leader of the Pakistan Taliban (TTP) was killed in May.<\/p>\n<p>In February a leak to NBC provided\u00a0a summary of the <a href=\"http:\/\/investigations.nbcnews.com\/_news\/2013\/02\/04\/16843014-justice-department-memo-reveals-legal-case-for-drone-strikes-on-americans\"  target=\"_blank\">secret legal justification<\/a>\u00a0that allows\u00a0the US to kill its own citizens in drone strikes.\u00a0In April\u00a0another leak to the McClatchy news agency was reported as showing the\u00a0that US is not clear who it has been killing in Pakistan. According to the leaked secret documents many killed by drones were <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mcclatchydc.com\/2013\/04\/09\/188062\/obamas-drone-war-kills-others.html#.UcxGHD6G3N8\"  target=\"_blank\">merely classified as \u2018unknown<\/a>\u2018.<\/p>\n<p><b>Yemen<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>June 2013 actions<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Confirmed US drone strikes: <b>0<\/b><br \/>\nFurther reported\/possible US strike events: <b>2<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed in US operations: <b>0-15<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed in US strikes: <b>0-1<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>All actions 2002 \u2013 June 30 2013*<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Confirmed US drone strikes: <b>46-56<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed: <b>240-349<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed: <b>14-49<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed: <b>2<\/b><br \/>\nReported injured: <b>62-144<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Possible extra US drone strikes: <b>80-99<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed: <b>284-454<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed: <b>25-50<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed: <b>9-11<\/b><br \/>\nReported injured: <b>78-101<\/b><\/p>\n<p>All other US covert operations:\u00a0<b>12-77<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed: <b>148-377<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed: <b>60-88<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed: <b>25-26<\/b><br \/>\nReported injured: <b>22-111<\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/01\/03\/yemen-reported-us-covert-actions-2013\/\" >Click here for the full Yemen data<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mcclatchydc.com\/2013\/06\/20\/194542\/boys-death-highlights-anger-some.html#.UcxY3T6G3N8\"  target=\"_blank\">10-year-old boy<\/a> reportedly died in a suspected US drone strike\u00a0in June, alongside up to six alleged al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants.\u00a0The boy,\u00a0<b>Abdulaziz<\/b>, was the younger brother of alleged AQAP commander\u00a0<b>Hassan al-Saleh Huraydan<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; described as a<b>\u00a0<\/b>key figure in enabling the movement of money and fighters from Saudi Arabia to Yemen.\u00a0They were killed, reportedly along with Saudi nationals, in a vehicle as they travelled through the northern province of al Jawf on June 9.<\/p>\n<p>The strike was the second of the month. The first hit Abyan province on June 1, killing alleged\u00a0senior AQAP militant\u00a0<b>Awadh Ali Lakra<\/b> and a second\u00a0alleged militant,\u00a0<b>Lawar<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>There was strong evidence to suggest both were drone strikes. Yemen Air Force commander\u00a0<b>Rashid al Janad<\/b>\u00a0said he was \u2018unaware of any air strikes that have been launched\u2019 by Yemeni planes. And June\u2019s second attack targeted a moving vehicle which is potentially beyond the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2012\/03\/29\/barely-functional-why-us-is-likely-to-be-behind-yemens-precision-airstrikes\/\"  target=\"_blank\">Yemen Air Force\u2019s capability<\/a>. However\u00a0the Bureau could not confirm US\u00a0involvement \u2013 or the use of drones\u00a0&#8211; in either.<\/p>\n<p><b>Six-monthly trends<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The covert drone war has been openly discussed by senior figures in the US administration. So too has President Obama\u2019s wish to become more transparent about the drone programme \u2013 an effort to \u2018push back against a lot of these <a href=\"http:\/\/www.gq.com\/news-politics\/big-issues\/201306\/john-brennan-cia-director-interview-drone-program?printable=true\"  target=\"_blank\">allegations that are not true<\/a>\u2018.\u00a0And Brennan hinted at giving the Pentagon control of drone strikes outside Pakistan during his Senate hearing. Some suggest this would make the programme <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cfr.org\/drones\/transferring-cia-drone-strikes-pentagon\/p30434\"  target=\"_blank\">more transparent<\/a> because unlike CIA strikes, Pentagon drone strikes can be publicly acknowledged by the government.<\/p>\n<p>Moving the programme to military control is not a guarantee of more transparency.\u00a0Earlier this\u00a0year the US military <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/03\/12\/erased-us-data-shows-1-in-4-missiles-in-afghan-airstrikes-now-fired-by-drone\/\"  target=\"_blank\">significantly reduced<\/a>\u00a0its openness about\u00a0its use of drones in Afghanistan, reversing an earlier decision to regularly publish data about the use of drones. It had originally agreed to declassify the data following months of discussions with the Bureau, but reclassified the data, claiming attention had \u2018disproportionately focused\u2019 on drones.<\/p>\n<p>In Yemen the Pentagon has also run a targeted killing programme\u00a0for four years or more, and does not publish details of these operations.<\/p>\n<p>So far this year the Bureau has recorded four confirmed US strikes on Yemen. However it is not clear who carried out\u00a0up to 12 other reported strikes. In the first half of 2012 this pattern was more pronounced \u2013 the Bureau recorded at least 21 confirmed US drone strikes, but cannot confirm US involvement in 42 more reported attacks.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_31573\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/graph2-yemen.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-31573\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-31573\" alt=\"US involvement cannot be confirmed in the majority of reported drone strikes.\" src=\"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/graph2-yemen-300x158.png\" width=\"300\" height=\"158\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/graph2-yemen-300x158.png 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/graph2-yemen.png 748w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-31573\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">US involvement cannot be confirmed in the majority of reported drone strikes.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The Yemen government has claimed its airforce carried out many of the \u2018other\u2019\u00a0attacks. But the Yemen Air Force is incapable of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wilsoncenter.org\/sites\/default\/files\/yementranscript.pdf\"  target=\"_blank\">flying missions at night<\/a>, let alone carrying out precision strikes such as many of those reported in Yemen.<\/p>\n<p>At least 183 people died in these unconfirmed drone attacks in the first half of 2012 \u2013 more than double the dead from confirmed US operations. And at least 28 people have died in possible drone strikes so far in 2013, double those killed in confirmed US attacks.<\/p>\n<p>Journalists have struggled at times to investigate reported drone strikes, particularly in 2012 when neither government nor AQAP forces would allow journalists into areas under al Qaeda\u2019s control.\u00a0Retrospective investigations have uncovered evidence of US involvement in strikes, and discovered previously unreported civilian casualties.<\/p>\n<p>This year investigators from human rights charities <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hoodonline.org\/\"  target=\"_blank\">HOOD<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/en.alkarama.org\/\"  target=\"_blank\">al Karama<\/a> and, independently, journalists from a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/sverigesradio.se\/sida\/artikel.aspx?programid=83&amp;artikel=5481640\"  target=\"_blank\">Swedish radio programme<\/a>\u00a0visited the site of a January strike. They found fragments of Hellfire missiles, confirming it was a US attack. And they discovered the Yemeni government had acknowledged the deaths of two civilians in the strike, a university student and a teacher. This is despite anonymous government sources previously naming all the dead as al Qaeda militants.<\/p>\n<p>More than half of this year\u2019s reported strikes took place in January, before an 85-day pause while Yemen\u2019s numerous tribes convened for the start of\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/world-middle-east-21828527\"  target=\"_blank\">reconciliation talks<\/a>\u00a0in the capital. As this conference continued the drones returned <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/05\/02\/april-2013-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/\"  target=\"_blank\">in April<\/a> killing at least four people in Wessab. A week later journalist and activist <b>Farea al Muslimi<\/b>, who was born in Wessab, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=JtQ_mMKx3Ck\"  target=\"_blank\">testified before the US Congress<\/a> about the effect of drones on Yemen and its people.<\/p>\n<p><i>* All but one of these actions have taken place during\u00a0Obama\u2019s presidency. Reports of incidents in Yemen often conflate individual strikes. The range in the total strikes and total drone strikes we have recorded reflects this.<\/i><\/p>\n<p><b>Somalia<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>June 2013 actions<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Total reported US operations: <b>0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>All actions 2007 \u2013 June 30 2013<\/b><\/p>\n<p>US drone strikes: <b>3-9<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed:\u00a0<b>7-27<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed: <b>0-15<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed: <b>0<\/b><br \/>\nReported injured: <b>2-24<\/b><\/p>\n<p>All other US covert operations: <b>7-14<\/b><br \/>\nTotal reported killed: <b>47-143<\/b><br \/>\nCivilians reported killed: <b>7-42<\/b><br \/>\nChildren reported killed: <b>1-3<\/b><br \/>\nReported injured: <b>12-20<\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2012\/02\/22\/get-the-data-somalias-hidden-war\/\" >Click here for the Bureau\u2019s full data on Somalia<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Once again there were no US drone strikes reported in Somalia in June \u2013 the tenth consecutive month with no reported US operations in the country.\u00a0However al Shabaab continues to threaten Somali security. The militant group once again successfully penetrated the heightened security area around Mogadishu airport to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/2013\/06\/19\/us-somalia-blast-idUSBRE95I0AJ20130619\"  target=\"_blank\">attack the UN Development Programme offices<\/a>\u00a0on June 19. As many as 22 people were killed in the assault and ensuing 90-minute gun battle.<\/p>\n<p>Al Shabaab militants were driven from Kismayo late last year by a combination of Kenyan soldiers and local militia. Yet the government in Mogadishu has failed to exert sufficient influence on the southern port, and fighting between competing clans and militia on June 7 and 8 left\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.emro.who.int\/som\/somalia-news\/31-killed-in-figting-kismayo.html\"  target=\"_blank\">31 civilians dead and 38 injured<\/a>, according to the World Health Organisation. At least seven were killed in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.globalpost.com\/dispatch\/news\/afp\/130627\/somali-warlords-fight-over-key-southern-port\"  target=\"_blank\">further clashes<\/a> on June 26 and 27.<\/p>\n<p>It emerged that the US operates its drones over Somalia using a satellite relay station in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dw.de\/germany-shies-away-from-comment-on-possible-role-in-us-drone-war\/a-16852606\"  target=\"_blank\">Ramstein, Germany<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.garoweonline.com\/artman2\/publish\/Somalia_27\/Somalia_Drone_crashes_in_Puntland_second_in_week.shtml\"  target=\"_blank\">Another drone reportedly crashed<\/a> in Somalia, this time in the north of the country in the autonomous region of Puntland. It is unclear who the drone belonged to, in contrast with <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/06\/03\/may-2013-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/\"  target=\"_blank\">an earlier incident in May<\/a> when the Pentagon unusually claimed a crashed surveillance drone as its own.<\/p>\n<p><b>Six-monthly trends<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The Bureau has not recorded a single US drone attack or other covert operation in\u00a0Somalia in the first half of 2013. Whether this is due to poor reporting from the region or an absence of attacks is unclear.<\/p>\n<p>This is in\u00a0contrast to 2012 when there were a number of reports of US\u00a0drone strikes\u00a0in the African country including two that killed British citizens.\u00a0This was reported on in a\u00a0major Bureau investigation published by the Independent in February which revealed that two former British citizens died in US drone strikes in Somalia in 2012 after having their British citizenships removed.\u00a0<b>Bilal al Berjawi<\/b>\u00a0was <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2012\/02\/22\/get-the-data-somalias-hidden-war\/\"  target=\"_blank\">killed by a drone <\/a>in January 2012, with his childhood friend and fellow alleged militant <b>Mohammed Sakr<\/b> dying in a US drone strike the following month.<\/p>\n<p>Both were UK citizens until Home Secretary Theresa May signed an order in 2010 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/02\/27\/former-british-citizens-killed-by-drone-strikes-after-passports-revoked\/\"  target=\"_blank\">removing their UK nationality <\/a>while they were out of the country. May has the power to remove someone\u2019s citizenship on national security grounds.\u00a0Only\u00a0individuals\u00a0with dual nationality can be deprived of their British citizenship.\u00a0But being born in the UK is not a protection. The Bureau has identified five dual nations who were\u00a0born in the UK who have <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/02\/27\/when-being-born-british-isnt-enough\/\"  target=\"_blank\">been deprived of their British nationality<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; including Mohamed Sakr.<\/p>\n<p>Sakr\u2019s lawyer <b>Saghir Hussain<\/b> told the Bureau there appeared to be a link between the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/02\/27\/former-british-citizens-killed-by-drone-strikes-after-passports-revoked\/\"  target=\"_blank\">deprivation of citizenship and subsequent US action<\/a>. Leading immigration lawyer <b>Ian McDonald QC<\/b> said that stripping people of their citizenship\u00a0\u2018means that the British government can <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/02\/27\/former-british-citizens-killed-by-drone-strikes-after-passports-revoked\/\"  target=\"_blank\">completely wash their hands<\/a> if the security services give information to the Americans who use their drones to track someone and kill them\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>___________________________<\/p>\n<p><i>The Bureau of Investigative Journalism is an independent not-for-profit organisation. Established in April 2010, the Bureau is the first of its kind in the UK, where philanthropically funded journalism is rare. Our\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/who-we-are\/\" >team of journalists<\/a>\u00a0bolsters original news by producing high-quality investigations for press and broadcast media with the aim of educating the public and the media on both the realities of today\u2019s world and the value of honest reporting.<\/i><\/p>\n<p><strong><i>Please support our work &#8211; share this article.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thebureauinvestigates.com\/2013\/07\/01\/six-month-update-us-covert-actions-in-pakistan-yemen-and-somalia\/\" >Go to Original \u2013 thebureauinvestigates.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u2022\tBureau data suggests the CIA is killing fewer people in each strike in Pakistan.<br \/>\n\u2022\tLack of official transparency means it remains unclear who is carrying out strikes in Yemen.<br \/>\n\u2022\tNo reports of US operations in Somalia but al Shabaab continues to launch attacks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-in-focus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31571"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31571\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}