CIA set to launch drone strikes from Niger

WASHINGTON: The CIA is set to launch drone strikes against suspected Libya-based jihadists with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State from a base in northeastern Niger, the New York Times reported.

Nigerien and US officials told the newspaper that Central Intelligence Agency operatives have been flying surveillance drones from a small airport in the town of Dirkou. The airport has grown since February to include new runways and security posts, the Times reported on Sunday, citing satellite images.

Niger’s interior minister Mohamed Bazoum acknowledged the drone presence, but gave few details, while Dirkou mayor Boubakar Jerome said the drones have helped improve the town’s security.

The move gives an expanded role to the CIA in drone strikes, a change carried out under President Donald Trump. His predecessor Barack Obama sought to put drone operations under military control, which is less secretive and more accountable than the CIA, the Times said. The Pentagon operates a base in Niger’s capital Niamey, some 800 miles southwest of Dirkou, from which it has launched strikes against Libya-based jihadists, the Times reported.

TOUGH STANCE AGAINST INT’L CRIMINAL COURT

The US on Monday will adopt an aggressive posture against the International Criminal Court, threatening sanctions against ICC judges if they proceed with an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by Americans in Afghanistan.

President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, is to make the announcement in a midday speech to the Federalist Society, a conservative group, in Washington. It will be his first major address since joining the Trump White House.

“The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court,” Bolton will say.