UN lawyer criticizes drone attacks
Claims operation risks legitimizing terrorism
ISLAMABAD — A British lawyer leading a United Nations inquiry into CIA drone strikes has compared them with al-Qaida attacks and has claimed that the United States’ covert program risked legitimizing terrorism.
Ben Emmerson said the U.S. strikes were illegal under international law. Relatives of the victims of terrorism derided his comments as “naïve,” “outrageous” and “bizarre.”
Emmerson’s views could threaten to undermine his nine-month investigation, which was launched after complaints about drones by Pakistan, Russia and others at the UN.
In an interview with CNN, Em- merson, the UN’s special rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights, said: “If it is lawful for the U.S. to drone al-Qaida associates wherever they find them, then it is also lawful for al-Qaida to target U.S. military or infrastructure wherever (militants) find them.”
The UN Human Rights Council asked Emmerson to investigate the controversial attacks by pilotless aircraft on Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen.
He is due to report in October.