US Strikes Kill Dozens of Civilians, But Administration Admits It Doesn't Know Who They Are.
The Trump administration has secretly been waging a war against suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, killing over 60 civilians in the process. In a shocking admission, the administration revealed that it does not know the identities of the victims of its strikes, and that the War Department cannot meet the evidentiary burden necessary to hold or try survivors.
According to two government officials, the administration declared a "non-international armed conflict" weeks if not months before the first attack. The justification for these strikes is based on Article II of the US Constitution, which grants the president authority as commander-in-chief, but many experts argue that this is a stretch.
The administration claims that the strikes are permissible because the US is engaged in a "non-international armed conflict" with "designated terrorist organizations," or DTOs. However, international humanitarian law requires specific facts to be applicable, and the current reality does not meet these requirements.
Experts say that the strikes are illegal extrajudicial killings because the military is targeting civilians who do not pose an imminent threat of violence. The summary executions are a significant departure from standard practice in the US war on drugs, where law enforcement arrests suspected drug smugglers.
In a briefing to lawmakers and staffers, Pentagon officials admitted that they cannot positively identify individuals killed in strikes, and that they only need to show a connection to a DTO or affiliate. This is despite the fact that three people have survived the attacks and no one has been prosecuted for supposed drug smuggling.
The administration has no plans to seek an authorization for the use of military force similar to the 2001 AUMF, which authorized counterterrorism operations against those responsible for 9/11. Experts say that even if Congress authorized it, this would still be illegal under US and international law because there is no armed conflict with these cartels.
A senior Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Mark Warner, blasted the Trump administration for conducting a secret briefing on the legal rationale for the strikes for a select group of Republican senators. He said that decisions about the use of American military force are not campaign strategy sessions and that the administration's actions set a "reckless and deeply troubling precedent."
The Intercept has reported extensively on the Trump administration's attacks on democracy, including its attempts to silence news outlets that challenge Trump's claims and its disregard for court orders. The organization is now independent of corporate interests and relies on donations from members to continue its work.
The Trump administration has secretly been waging a war against suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, killing over 60 civilians in the process. In a shocking admission, the administration revealed that it does not know the identities of the victims of its strikes, and that the War Department cannot meet the evidentiary burden necessary to hold or try survivors.
According to two government officials, the administration declared a "non-international armed conflict" weeks if not months before the first attack. The justification for these strikes is based on Article II of the US Constitution, which grants the president authority as commander-in-chief, but many experts argue that this is a stretch.
The administration claims that the strikes are permissible because the US is engaged in a "non-international armed conflict" with "designated terrorist organizations," or DTOs. However, international humanitarian law requires specific facts to be applicable, and the current reality does not meet these requirements.
Experts say that the strikes are illegal extrajudicial killings because the military is targeting civilians who do not pose an imminent threat of violence. The summary executions are a significant departure from standard practice in the US war on drugs, where law enforcement arrests suspected drug smugglers.
In a briefing to lawmakers and staffers, Pentagon officials admitted that they cannot positively identify individuals killed in strikes, and that they only need to show a connection to a DTO or affiliate. This is despite the fact that three people have survived the attacks and no one has been prosecuted for supposed drug smuggling.
The administration has no plans to seek an authorization for the use of military force similar to the 2001 AUMF, which authorized counterterrorism operations against those responsible for 9/11. Experts say that even if Congress authorized it, this would still be illegal under US and international law because there is no armed conflict with these cartels.
A senior Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Mark Warner, blasted the Trump administration for conducting a secret briefing on the legal rationale for the strikes for a select group of Republican senators. He said that decisions about the use of American military force are not campaign strategy sessions and that the administration's actions set a "reckless and deeply troubling precedent."
The Intercept has reported extensively on the Trump administration's attacks on democracy, including its attempts to silence news outlets that challenge Trump's claims and its disregard for court orders. The organization is now independent of corporate interests and relies on donations from members to continue its work.
US strikes killing dozens of civilians without knowing who they are? 
It's like a bloody video game, not real life! 
What's next, drone strikes in grandma's garden? 
like, isn't that against the law or something? And they're saying it's legit because of some article in the constitution... I mean come on 
. This is not how you do covert ops, dude. You gotta have some kinda evidence before you start sniping at people. And what's with this "non-international armed conflict" thing? Sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo to me 
. I mean, the US government can't even identify who they're killing, and it's all under the guise of a "non-international armed conflict" 
. It's like they're trying to cover up what's really going on. And now they're saying that as long as you've got some connection to a DTO or affiliate, you're just a civilian who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time 
. That doesn't sound right to me.
. I mean, it's not like they're doing anything illegal or anything, but still... shouldn't there be some transparency here? It's just another example of the Trump administration being super secretive and trying to do whatever they want without anyone holding them accountable 
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this whole thing just got super messed up. i mean, how do you even justify killing dozens of civilians without knowing who they are? it's like a game of target practice out there in the ocean. 
newsflash: just because you're in a "non-international armed conflict" doesn't mean you can go around shooting people willy-nilly. and what's with this whole "designated terrorist organizations" thing? sounds like some made-up excuse to me. 
this is so messed up how can they just kill people without knowing who they are? aren't they breaking some major rules about not targeting civilians? 
i mean, the whole "non-international armed conflict" thing sounds like a total cop-out to me. if it's not an actual war then why are they using military force? and what about all these survivors who are still alive? shouldn't they be able to seek justice or something? 
. And for real, if this is an armed conflict, then we need to know it and have some kind of oversight, you feel? This whole thing reeks of desperation and disregard for human life 
This is just getting crazy, right? I mean, they're basically saying they don't even know who these people are that they're killing! 
US admin is literally killing people left and right in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, but they don't even know who these civilians are!!! It's like they're just randomly dropping bombs without any regard for human life 
. These strikes are basically extrajudicial killings and that's so not okay 
and Sen. Mark Warner is straight up callin out the admin for bein reckless & settin a bad precedent 
... only to find out that your name, face, and family are all unknown to the admin 
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. It's time for the US to take responsibility and follow the law 
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. If they can't even be honest about what they're doing, how do we know they're not just making up excuses for their own recklessness? 
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someone needs to hold the admin accountable for this, because right now it looks like they're just making up the rules as they go along. 