SOURCE: THE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan has said that a UN report on growing civilian casualties in US drone strikes largely vindicates its stance vis-a-vis the controversial use of deadly remotely-piloted aircraft in the tribal regions.
The report by the UN special rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism was published ahead of a debate on the use of drones, at the UN General Assembly in New York next Friday.
Emmerson, who travelled to Islamabad for his investigation, said the country’s foreign ministry has records of as many as 330 drone strikes in the tribal regions since 2004. Up to 2,200 people have been killed – of whom at least 400 were civilians.
The new UN report on drones largely reflects the stance and policy of the government of Pakistan on the use of remotely-piloted aircraft in the region, Foreign Office spokesperson Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry said on Saturday.
“The government of Pakistan has consistently maintained that drone strikes are counter-productive‚ result in the loss of innocent lives, and have human rights and humanitarian implications. Such strikes also set dangerous precedents,” Chaudhry told The Express Tribune.
He was referring to the report by Ben Emmerson, the UN special rapporteur on counterterrorism, that examined the use of drones in conflict zones and in covert settings. The report accuses the United States of downplaying the number of civilians killed in the drone operations, while failing to assist in the investigation by releasing its own figures.
According to Emmerson, Pakistan has confirmed that some 2,200 people were killed by drone strikes in the past decade. Of these, at least 400-450 were civilians and an additional 200 victims were deemed “probable non-combatants”.
Meanwhile, the FO spokesperson maintained that unilateral drone strikes are a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Pakistan has repeatedly emphasised the importance of bringing an immediate end to drone strikes, he added.
SOURCE: THE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM
He said the US-sponsored drone attacks are intensely hated in Pakistan, but Washington views them as a vital tool in the fight against Taliban and al Qaeda militants. “These strikes have a negative impact on the mutual desire of both the countries (US and Pakistan) to forge a cordial and cooperative relationship and to ensure peace and stability in the region.”
Rayan Khan, a research fellow at Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), said that in the past 10 years, ‘dronology’ has undergone significant changes in terms of funding and application in the United States.
“The Obama administration intensified the use of drones in conjunction with an alarming number of civilian casualties,” he added. The US policy has been to ensure secrecy of the programme, leaving the public in the dark.
“This leaves the media to fill in the blanks and, as a result, various news sources offer a wide spectrum of statistics in terms of the effectiveness of drone attacks, ranging anywhere from a 98% civilian casualty rate to 10%,” he explained. “The lack of official statements coupled with misleading reporting has led to a warped understanding of the current situation.”
One of Ben Emmerson’s Pakistan research team member and CRSS executive director, Imtiaz Gul, said the report exposes the duplicity of the United States. “American unilateral militarism (use of drones) basically is a big disadvantage for host governments.”
Gul told The Express Tribune that Emmerson’s report on Pakistan is based on 24 case studies that CRSS provided to him and the entire data was compiled after a survey mostly conducted in the Waziristan agencies.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 20th, 2013.
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Put all these people and their family under the drones who are speaking in favour of the drone attacks.
These figures are still suppressed, we know these destruction and death machines used as a toy by the CIA has never managed to target a TTP millitan most of the times.
Who killed moré innocent people ? Drones or the terrorists ? Please answer this first before we loose our voice by demanding to STOP Drones.....let us not be emotional, think not through heart but use our brains, please.
@Syed A. Mateen: Ask those 40,000 plus civiliians killed by the terrorists and you are crying over 400 people...? The numbers killed in both case are pathetic because they are human lives, but is this killing by the terrorists moré dangerous than those killed by Drones ? Out of 2200 total people killed by Drones, 400 are civilians and 1800 are terrorists.....so by what logic we are demanding that drones not good....we have to créate awarness on this issue if the numbers given through UN is correct.....because 1800 were terrorists unless you guys want them to continue with the killing......Think about it !
US drone attacks have killed more innocent people then terrorists, but for US, it's collateral damage.
Ask those Pakistanis who lost their loved ones who will never return back in this world again.
One of the reasons of anti-American sentiments in Pakistan is due to drone attacks.
@Ali: What if you or I were couple of the 40,000+ innocent people killed by the Taliban, did you ever think about that? This figure is a hundred times worse than the innocent people that may have been killed by the drones. The Taliban's terrorist attacks pre-date the drones, so cannot be considered a consequence of the drone attacks.
The Taliban have to be eliminated one way or the other because they are trying to impose their ignorance on the country through violence and terror. If Pakistan cannot do it, then I am glad the Americans are at least trying.
This is a slap on the faces of those who are against the Imran Khan,
@Last Word: UN report is incorrect and we as people should expect more from the "brilliant" think-tanks that dwell in its walls. It is imperative to understand that militancy and radicalism are ideologies and not tangible bands. An ideology can ONLY be eliminated by another ideology. Coalition forces are a crown example of stupid problem resolution methodologies. Trillions of dollars spent on war, yet again, after 12+ years they realize they made the wrong move. All nations who took part in the war are in debt, their citizens are paying huge taxes just to make more enemies than they initially had. It went nowhere. You should rather raise a finger of shame on UN on failing to deliver a razor-edge report clearly indicating the mindless decision made by USA.
Pakistan FO is disappointed that drone has been used forces that were loyal to Pakistan and disloyal to rest of the civilized world. Pakistani establishment spent millions to train and cultivate relationships with them. People like Ali would rather be a victim of terrorist who blow up in the mosque or market place. Pakistan would be delighted if the very same drones were used against Baloch freedom fighters or against India. It is also interesting to note that if this technology is so bad than why is Pakistan wants to acquire this technology and begging for it? If this technology is so effective than why Pakistan is claiming to be the victim of terrorism? Obviously it is a double speak.