07-01-2016, 09:24 PM
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016...ikes-outs/
"The Obama administration said Friday that the U.S. has killed as many as 2,581 terrorists and up to 116 civilians in drone strikes in countries where the U.S. isn’t at war.
Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper said the total number of drone strikes outside Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria was 473 during the first seven years of Mr. Obama’s presidency. The range of “combatant deaths” was estimated between 2,372 and 2,581; non-combatant deaths were estimated between 64 and 116.
The administration said the estimate of civilian deaths is lower than figures often given by non-governmental organizations, and attributed the discrepancies to varying definitions of who is a combatant and difficulty in getting accurate information in some of the target areas.
“Although the U.S. government has access to a wide range of information, the figures released today should be considered in light of the inherent limitations on the ability to determine the precise number of combatant and non-combatant deaths given the non-permissive environments in which these strikes often occur,” Mr. Clapper’s office said.
"The Obama administration said Friday that the U.S. has killed as many as 2,581 terrorists and up to 116 civilians in drone strikes in countries where the U.S. isn’t at war.
Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper said the total number of drone strikes outside Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria was 473 during the first seven years of Mr. Obama’s presidency. The range of “combatant deaths” was estimated between 2,372 and 2,581; non-combatant deaths were estimated between 64 and 116.
The administration said the estimate of civilian deaths is lower than figures often given by non-governmental organizations, and attributed the discrepancies to varying definitions of who is a combatant and difficulty in getting accurate information in some of the target areas.
“Although the U.S. government has access to a wide range of information, the figures released today should be considered in light of the inherent limitations on the ability to determine the precise number of combatant and non-combatant deaths given the non-permissive environments in which these strikes often occur,” Mr. Clapper’s office said.