Title: Drones and Targeted Killings: Ethics, Law, Politics
Abstract: and Targeted Killings: Ethics, Law, Politics Edited by Sarah Knuckey New York, NY: IDEBATE Press, 2014 392 pages $25.99 (paper) [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] As global jihadist organizations continue to ramp up targeting of the West and its allies--[both as a result of collaboration with one another, and as a means of vying for primacy within their collective movement]--the United States will continue to look to deployment of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) as a valuable counterterrorism tool, enabling the use of precise lethal force with comparatively little risk to non-combatants on the ground, and zero risk of American casualties. While drones have undoubtedly provided the American warfighter with significant tactical advantage over an asymmetric enemy that operates without legal or moral constraint, their prominence in the targeted killing component of U.S. counterterrorism efforts has ignited substantial debate over the legality and advisability of using such weapons for this purpose, particularly away from the so-called hot battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq. In and Targeted Killings: Ethics, Law, Politics, Prof. Sarah Knuckey of Columbia Law School endeavors to introduce readers to the various contours of this debate. Drawing from numerous sources from within and outside government, Knuckey compiles several speeches and articles (or excerpts thereof) covering drone strikes, and divides them into four categories: 1) Are drone strikes effective? 2) Are drone strikes ethical? 3) Are drones strikes legal? and 4) Transparency and Accountability--Efforts and Obstacles. Knuckey frames her objective as follows: Drones and Targeted Killings was designed to stimulate debate among those who are new to the issues. It brings to the fore human rights, civil liberties, and civilian protection issues, while introducing readers to a range of diverse views from a variety of sources. She succeeds in achieving these goals in some respects, but falls short in others. The effectiveness section strikes a reasonable balance between those who argue drone strikes are effective in countering terrorist operatives and organizations, and those who argue they are ineffective or even counterproductive. Thoughtful arguments asserting effectiveness --including from CIA Director John Brennan, American University law professor Kenneth Anderson, and Daniel Byman of Georgetown University--are paired with likewise thoughtful counter-arguments from the Stimson Center and Micah Zenko of the Council on Foreign Relations, exploring at times concepts such as the extent and importance of blowback vis-a-vis drone strikes; the reliability of data on civilian casualties resulting from drone strikes; and the extent to which US drone strike practice could affect how other nations use their own drones in the future. The ethics section is similarly balanced, exploring varying points of view on whether US drone strike practice is moral or immoral. …
Publication Year: 2015
Publication Date: 2015-09-22
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 3
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