Accountability for “Targeted Killings” & Drone Strikes

Accountability for “Targeted Killings” and Drone Strikes

The Human Rights Institute and Clinic work with civil society around the world to advance respect for international law in the context of lethal force and U.S. counterterrorism/military operations abroad, and to address pervasive secrecy and impunity. The Institute and Clinic seek to ensure greater awareness of the civilian impacts of U.S. wars, and informed public debate about the human and political costs of U.S. operations. They carry out advocacy to promote compliance with international law, transparency in the use of force, and accountability for legal violations. The Institute and Clinic have made significant contributions to the national and international debates on U.S. drone strikes.

In 2014-15, the Institute and students in the Human Rights Clinic have worked with U.S. and international civil society groups to develop joint NGO letters to both the U.N. and the U.S. government urging greater transparency, accountability, and compliance with international law in the use of drones for lethal targeting. The clinic also prepared extensive research on advocacy work and strategies, hosted strategy meetings with civil society organizations, conducted consultations with military, civil society, U.N., and international law actors, as well as journalists and Yemeni experts, to develop new advocacy projects to address drone strikes, and carried out advocacy and advising to governments and the U.N.

Updates

Human Rights Clinic joins human rights and civil liberties organizations to call on the Obama Administration to publicly acknowledge and investigate drone strikes and targeted killings May 13, 2015.

Human Rights Clinic advocates for accountability for targeted killings in a letter to the UN Human Rights Council, September 22, 2014

Human Rights Clinic's submission of testimony to Senate Judiciary hearing on drones, April 23, 2012

View the major report Civilian Impact of Drones:Unexamined Costs, Unanswered Questions

View the report on media practices Counting Drone Strike Deaths

Watch the C-SPAN broadcast of Targeting with Drone Technology: Humanitarian Law Implications.

Read the Institute's briefing paper on the U.S. government's legal standards for drones use.

Read the Institute's letter on U.N. concerns regarding U.S. targeting operations with drone technology.