• Issue Presented:
The issue for debate this week relates to the methods of force that the U.S. has used in pursuing the conflict with al Qaeda and affiliated entities. As the conflict continues, the U.S. has increasingly used unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs, (better known as drones) to conduct attacks in countries all over the world. Critics of this policy have claimed that such operations amount to extrajudicial killings and are forbidden under international and domestic laws. Proponents, on the other hand, argue that the attacks are necessary in the conduct of the war on terror, prevent the loss of innocent lives, and have proven extraordinarly effective in degrading the capacities of America's enemies. In this section, we will begin by discussing the laws regarding the use of force, and then we will engage in a debate as to the appropriateness of the use of drones to conduct lethal strikes abroad.
The question for discussion this week is simple: is U.S. policy employing the use of UAVs to conduct lethal strikes legal under international and domestic law, and is it effective?