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Living Under Drones Death, Injury, and Trauma to Civilians from US Drone Practices in Pakistan

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Living Under Drones Death, Injury, and Trauma to Civilians from US Drone Practices in Pakistan Fall 08 September 2012 Living Under Drones Death, Injury, and Trauma to Civilians From US Drone Practices in Pakistan International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic Stanford Law School Global Justice Clinic http://livingunderdrones.org/ NYU School of Law Cover Photo: Roof of the home of Faheem Qureshi, a then 14-year old victim of a January 23, 2009 drone strike (the first during President Obama’s administration), in Zeraki, North Waziristan, Pakistan. Photo supplied by Faheem Qureshi to our research team. Suggested Citation: INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION CLINIC (STANFORD LAW SCHOOL) AND GLOBAL JUSTICE CLINIC (NYU SCHOOL OF LAW), LIVING UNDER DRONES: DEATH, INJURY, AND TRAUMA TO CIVILIANS FROM US DRONE PRACTICES IN PAKISTAN (September, 2012) TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I ABOUT THE AUTHORS III EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS V INTRODUCTION 1 METHODOLOGY 2 CHALLENGES 4 CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT 7 DRONES: AN OVERVIEW 8 DRONES AND TARGETED KILLING AS A RESPONSE TO 9/11 10 PRESIDENT OBAMA’S ESCALATION OF THE DRONE PROGRAM 12 “PERSONALITY STRIKES” AND SO-CALLED “SIGNATURE STRIKES” 12 WHO MAKES THE CALL? 13 PAKISTAN’S DIVIDED ROLE 15 CONFLICT, ARMED NON-STATE GROUPS, AND MILITARY FORCES IN NORTHWEST PAKISTAN 17 UNDERSTANDING THE TARGET: FATA IN CONTEXT 20 PASHTUN CULTURE AND SOCIAL NORMS 22 GOVERNANCE 23 ECONOMY AND HOUSEHOLDS 25 ACCESSING FATA 26 CHAPTER 2: NUMBERS 29 TERMINOLOGY 30 UNDERREPORTING OF CIVILIAN CASUALTIES BY US GOVERNMENT SOURCES 32 CONFLICTING MEDIA REPORTS 35 OTHER CONSIDERATIONS THAT MAY LEAD TO CONFLICTING REPORTS 40 LIMITED FIRST-HAND KNOWLEDGE 40 UNREPORTED STRIKES 40 STRIKE DATA AGGREGATORS 43 THE LONG WAR JOURNAL 45 NEW AMERICA FOUNDATION 47 THE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM 53 CHAPTER 3: LIVING UNDER DRONES 55 VOICES FROM BELOW: ACCOUNTS OF THREE DRONE STRIKES 56 MARCH 17, 2011 57 JUNE 15, 2011 62 JANUARY 23, 2009 66 BEYOND KILLING: CIVILIAN IMPACTS OF US DRONE STRIKE PRACTICES 73 IMPACTS ON WILLINGNESS TO RESCUE VICTIMS AND PROVIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE 74 DIRECT PROPERTY DAMAGE AND ECONOMIC HARDSHIP IMPACTS 77 MENTAL HEALTH IMPACTS OF DRONE STRIKES AND THE PRESENCE OF DRONES 80 IMPACTS ON EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES 88 IMPACTS ON BURIAL TRADITIONS AND WILLINGNESS TO ATTEND FUNERALS 92 IMPACTS ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES 95 IMPACTS ON COMMUNITY TRUST 99 CHAPTER 4: LEGAL ANALYSIS 103 WHETHER THE US USE OF FORCE IN PAKISTAN VIOLATES PAKISTAN’S SOVEREIGNTY 105 CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH INDIVIDUALS MAY LAWFULLY BE LETHALLY TARGETED 110 THE EXISTENCE OF AN ARMED CONFLICT IN PAKISTAN 110 DRONE STRIKES UNDER INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW 112 IN THE ABSENCE OF ARMED CONFLICT, ONLY INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW APPLIES 117 US DOMESTIC LAW 118 ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY 122 CHAPTER 5: STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS 125 DRONE STRIKE ACCURACY AND EFFECTIVENESS IN HAMPERING ARMED VIOLENCE 125 US DRONE STRIKE POLICIES FOMENT ANTI-AMERICAN SENTIMENT AND MAY AID RECRUITMENT TO ARMED NON-STATE ACTORS 131 DRONES UNDERMINE US CREDIBILITY IN PAKISTAN AND THROUGHOUT THE REGION 138 US TARGETED KILLING AND DRONE STRIKE PRACTICES MAY ESTABLISH DANGEROUS PRECEDENTS AND UNDERMINE THE RULE OF LAW AND US DEMOCRACY 140 APPENDIX A: TESTIMONY 147 APPENDIX B: STRIKE & MINIMUM CASUALTY NUMBERS PER WEEK (2010-2012) 153 APPENDIX C: US STATEMENTS ON CIVILIAN CASUALTIES 157 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report is the result of nine months of research by the International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic of Stanford Law School (Stanford Clinic) and the Global Justice Clinic at New York University School of Law (NYU Clinic). Professor James Cavallaro and Clinical Lecturer Stephan Sonnenberg led the Stanford Clinic team; Professor Sarah Knuckey led the NYU Clinic team. Adelina Acuña, Mohammad M. Ali, Anjali Deshmukh, Jennifer Gibson, Jennifer Ingram, Dimitri Phillips, Wendy Salkin, and Omar Shakir were the student research team at Stanford; Christopher Holland was the student researcher from NYU. Supervisors Cavallaro, Sonnenberg, and Knuckey, as well as student researchers Acuña, Ali, Deshmukh, Gibson, Salkin, and Shakir participated in the fact-finding investigations to Pakistan. In December 2011, Reprieve, a charity based in the United Kingdom, contacted the Stanford Clinic to ask whether it would be interested in conducting independent investigations into whether, and to what extent, drone strikes in Pakistan conformed to international law and caused harm and/or injury to civilians. The Stanford Clinic agreed to undertake independent fact-finding and analysis on these questions, as well as others related to drone strikes and targeted killings in Pakistan, beginning in December 2011. Later, the NYU Clinic agreed to join the research project and participated in the second research trip to Pakistan, as well as in additional research, writing, and editing of this report. In the course of the research, the Stanford and NYU Clinics have exchanged information and logistical support with Reprieve and its partner organization in Pakistan, the Foundation for Fundamental Rights (FFR). The latter organization assisted in contacting many of the potential interviewees, particularly those who reside in North Waziristan, and in the difficult work of arranging interviews. The Stanford and NYU Clinics designed the research project, analyzed information, and drafted and edited the report independently from Reprieve and FFR. Cavallaro, Knuckey, and Sonnenberg supervised and directed the preparation of the report, oversaw the writing, and served as the final editors of this publication. Students Acuña, Ali, Deshmukh, Gibson, and Shakir drafted initial sections of the report. Acuña, Ali, Gibson and Shakir synthesized and restructured the initial draft sections. Holland from the NYU Clinic also assisted with research for the report. Firas Abuzeid, Jennifer Ingram, Usman Liaqat, Clara Long, Waqas Mustafeez, Ada Sheng, and Zade Shakir assisted the research team in the review and fact-checking of the final version. Abdulrasheed Alabi, Danny Auron, Dr. Rajaie Batniji, Kristen DeRemer, Aisha Ghani, Emi MacLean, Veerle Opgenhaffen, Professor Margaret Satterthwaite, Dr. Saad Shakir, i Hina Shamsi, Professor Shirin Sinnar, Professor Allen Weiner, and Nate Wessler reviewed and commented on this report or some part thereof. The Stanford and NYU Clinics would like to thank these scholars and practitioners for volunteering their time and expertise. The opinions and positions articulated in this report are the exclusive responsibility of the research team and not of these external reviewers. The Clinics also extend our appreciation to the Brave New Foundation, in particular its president, Robert Greenwald, as well as Josh Busch, Aminta Goyel, Jeff Cole, David Fisher, Joseph Suzuki, and John Amick for preparing a short video to accompany the report. The Stanford and NYU Clinics express our sincere thanks to our translators in Islamabad and Peshawar. In particular, we would like to thank Muhammad Abdullah Ather, Rascim Khan Khattak, Muzafar Mohiuddin, Obaid Khan, Adnan Wazir, Usama Khilji, and Amna Bilal. A particular debt of gratitude is owed to those who agreed to be interviewed for this report, often at risk to themselves. This includes in particular the Waziris who traveled long distances and faced significant risks to share their accounts of living under drones with our research team. ii ABOUT THE AUTHORS Stanford International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic (IHRCRC) The Stanford International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic (Stanford Clinic) addresses a range of situations of rights abuse and violent conflict around the world. By providing direct representation to victims and by working with communities that have suffered or face potential abuse, the Clinic seeks both to train advocates and advance the cause of human rights and global justice. The Clinic engages students in sophisticated and multi-disciplinary advocacy to advance the basic human rights and dignity of victimized individuals and communities globally. Students divide their time between an intensive clinical seminar and ongoing clinical advocacy projects. They are exposed to a range of tools and strategies to promote respect for rights and dignity, including factual documentation, elaboration, and distribution of reports on rights abuse, litigation before national and international institutions, community empowerment strategies, and conflict transformation techniques. Global Justice Clinic (GJC) at NYU School of Law The Global Justice Clinic (NYU Clinic) at NYU School of Law provides high quality, professional human rights lawyering services to individual clients and non- governmental and inter-governmental organizations, partnering with groups based in the United States and abroad, or undertaking its own projects. Serving as legal advisers, counsel, co-counsel, or advocacy partners, Clinic students work side-by-side with human rights activists from around the world. Clinic work has addressed economic and social rights; human rights, national security, and counter-terrorism; transnational corporate accountability; weapons development; and the human rights of marginalized groups. These projects give students an opportunity to assist in formulating policy, research, and legal responses to cross-border human rights problems. iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS In the United States, the dominant narrative about the use of drones in Pakistan is of a surgically precise and effective tool that makes the US safer
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