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Nathan Pacello
Ms. Ingram
UWRT 1103
11/17/2015
Killing Machines: Is it Right to use Drones in the Middle-East?
During a speech regarding the militarys drone procedures, Obama stated
that from the civil war to our struggle against fascism, on through the long twilight
struggle of the Cold War, battlefields have changed and technology has evolved
(The New York Times). The most recent advancement in warfare machinery is the
unmanned aerial vehicle also known as a drone. Drones have emerged as the
militarys preferred method of eliminating terrorist threats in foreign countries such
as Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia. The progression of weaponry and technology
utilized by the armed forces during times of war has altered the strategies and
operations of the military as well as our enemies. The United States adversaries no
longer utilize civil war tactics where soldiers march into face to face conflicts in a
linear infantry formation displaying a uniform. The opposition is obscurely hidden in
their native country, undistinguishable from the civilians. John Brennan, Director of
the CIA counterterrorism agency, explained Americas use of drones as delivering
targeted, surgical pressure to the groups that threaten us (Dilanian). We have
engaged in a war from the shadows of unaccountability by covertly targeting and
assassinating leaders in the hierarchy of rebel organizations. Remotely piloted
aircrafts have ignited a debate over their legality, morality, and effectiveness. As
the next presidential election approaches, voters should be attentive to each
candidates stance on foreign policy because a change in this countrys commander-

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in-chief could impact the United States use of unmanned aerial vehicles and foreign
relations procedures. Remotely piloted aircrafts are productive and efficient at
hindering the abilities of terrorist organizations, while reducing costs and collateral
casualties of American troops and civilians. Drones have a tremendous potential to
become even more advanced and accurate at completing the militarys objectives.
The United States employs two methods to limit the manpower of terrorist
associations: decapitation and signature strikes. Decapitation strikes are aimed at
eradicating the leadership in rebel groups while signature strikes are directed to
groups that are involved in apprehensive and skeptical activities. The Bureau of
Investigative Journalism estimates that UAVs have resulted in approximately 4,800
casualties in about 550 strikes located in the Middle-East (Serle). These statistics
display the competence and productivity of the drone campaign. RPAs decrease the
ability of terrorists to correspond with each other, transport recruits, and migrate
from place to place. This forces members of ISIS and the Taliban to refrain from
communicating electronically, and holding meetings in open areas. Recruiting and
training a great deal of militants becomes problematic due to the threat of the eye
in the sky. The evidence discovered by Navy SEALS after the raid of Osama bin
Ladens compound revealed the Al-Qaeda leaders concerns about the rise of lower
leaders who are not as experienced as the former leaders (Byman). A note that
was confiscated revealed Bin Ladens report that brothers said they were frankly
exhausted from the enemys air bombardments (Robert Weiner & Tom Sherman).
Aerial attacks that eliminate the commanders of the enemy faction result in a lack
of stability, organization, and control.
Drones are the most cost effective means of weakening Al-Qaeda and ISIS in
comparison to other techniques. One of the most frequently used remotely piloted

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aircraft models is the MQ-9 reaper which has an estimated cost of $6.48 million
(Boyle). However, this machinery does not replace soldiers and requires a team of
military personnel to operate and execute an assignment. The approximate
functional cost is $3,250 per hour of flight (Boyle). These expenses are much more
affordable in contrast to the payments for using manned airplanes or jets, such as
the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. This airliner sets the military back $91 million dollars
per unit in addition to operation overhead of $16,500 per hour of flight (Boyle). Also,
as advanced technology and weaponry becomes less expensive and more
accessible, the military budget is still greatly damaged by deploying costly soldiers.
The improvement of pharmaceutical drugs, medical equipment, and practices
enables U.S troops to withstand major injuries. Since the beginning of the U.S
offensive in the Middle-East, there has been 1558 major limb amputations, 118,829
cases of post-traumatic stress disorder, and 287,911 episodes of traumatic brain
injury which can lead to more than 50 years of rehabilitation and medical costs
(McLean). The expenditures associated with these severe medical conditions along
with veteran suicides, homelessness, and drug addiction forces the military to
allocate an estimated $836 billion to future medical outlay for veterans of the
Iraq and Afghan missions (McLean). Americas armed forces pay a substantial price
for our protection and freedom. Due to the militarys budget constraints, one can
understand why unmanned aircrafts have become more prevalent in the military.
John Brennan explained in a press conference that Al Qaedas strategy is to bleed
us financially by drawing us into long, costly wars that also inflame anti-American
sentiment (Dilanian). America applies drones as counter attacks to the enemys
strategies which enables the armed services to cut costs adequately.

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The capabilities and benefits of RPAs allow the U.S to prevent strikes on
American soil by eliminating the manpower of the enemy, and minimizing civilian
damage by accurately and precisely bombarding targets from an undetectable
distance. Drones protect American citizens from malicious acts of brutality such as
9/11. The success of the counterterrorism agency is evident from the Osama bin
Laden assassination, the capture of the homegrown violent extremist in Portland,
and seizing the radicals that were planning an attack on the New York transit
system. There has not been a successful attack in the U.S from Al-Qaeda since 9/11.
These unmanned aerial vehicles assassinate people who are plotting to massacre
American citizens. Drones are able to kill these extremists before they act. However,
the civilian casualty discussion still persists. There are many different sources that
have attempted to approximate civilian casualties from UAV strikes. Each
organization and data collection group has different methods for discriminating
between terrorist and civilians which results in a misleading array of different
numbers and estimations. In 2013 the Pakistani Defense Ministry released
government calculations predicting civilian casualty rate of three percent. The
ministry said 317 drone strikes have killed 2,160 Islamist militants and 67 civilians
since 2008 (Sebastian Abbot and Munir Ahmed). The Air Force has even set a goal
of achieving zero civilian casualties, so if there are civilian casualty concerns, we
would continue to monitor a target or a potential target to see if there is a way to
mitigate that stated an Air Force official to the press (Wong). Because drones allow
the Air Force to demolish insurgent groups, ground troops are not needed to
reinforce and carry out missions. This eradicates the possibility of our servicemen
coming home in caskets. Drones save the lives of American troops and citizens,
while precisely destroying combatants and evading innocent fatalities.

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The U.S justifies lethal force based on the Authorization for Use of Military
Force resolution enacted by congress post 9/11. These regulation have permitted
the armed forces to act in self-defense when a threat is forthcoming. This
congressional document allows the President to use all necessary and appropriate
force to destroy terrorist institutions that are plotting against the U.S (Masters).
According to the U.S, our country is still in a war with Al-Qaeda and ISIS. The United
Nations article 51 in international law dictates that nations are allowed to target
individuals that pose a risk in foreign countries.
Many people criticize the UAV campaign but do not consider the harmful
effects of alternative methods. Using a manned aerial attack to drop bombs on
targeted groups would decimate the surrounding areas and cause noncombatant
casualties to skyrocket. Using the traditional boots on ground system would be just
as dangerous to the non-military personnel caught in the middle of the firefight.
Both processes would also escalate anti American sentiment. However, while
civilian fatalities are tragic they are also unavoidable and so the military attempts to
minimize this damage.
As stated in the introduction, drones are just another upgrade in warfare
firearms. The spread of technology will likely result in a great number of nations
with drone fleets in their military arsenal in the near future. Even American allies
that do not utilize UAVs directly play a role in data and intelligence collection that
aids the targeting process. It is quite convincing that Pakistan, the country that has
been effected most by RPAs, has privately supported U.S drone bombings. Pakistan
covertly contributed to the drone program and was notified prior to certain attacks.
The President of Yemen admired and appreciated RPAs abilities to pinpoint the
target and have zero margin of error, if you know what target youre aiming at

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(Byman). Both countries have an overlapping hit list and similar adversaries,
which is why these nations rely upon and benefit from drone strikes. The air raid
eliminates the common criminal that the weaker military and government is not
capable of prosecuting. Wiki Leaks conceded that Pakistans army chief, Ashfaq
Parvez Kayani requested military officials to utilize continuous Predator coverage
surveilling the areas of operation for antigovernment organizations. Pakistan and
Yemen cannot openly accept UAV air raids because the public in those countries has
a very negative view on the subject. Remotely piloted aircrafts are an effective and
legal method of minimizing collateral damage. It is a catalyst to the next generation
of warfare that has alleviated the pressure on Middle-Eastern countries from radical
groups.
Were just at the very early stages of what robotics and autonomous
systems might do, said Paul Scharre, a retired Army Ranger who is responsible for
constructing the Pentagons UAV policies. (Swarts). The potential of drone
technology can be compared to WWI when countries had just begun to utilize
aircrafts. The military knew that this equipment would revolutionize the battlefield
but never understood the limits of what they could achieve. Engineers and
specialists are progressing drones to have more proficiencies and functions. Smaller
UAVs could travel alongside and assist fighter pilots in their assignments, bearing
the load for extra ammunition and other sensors. The aviators on the jet would have
full control of a drone capable of firing missiles and bullets. Pilots would be adept to
canvass another aircraft or area from an undetectable distance. Also, Pocket sized
RPAs could accompany troops on the ground to survey a hazardous area or
discover the activities of the enemy. Rockets and weapons that the drones are
carrying will become more precise and accurate too. The armed services are

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producing lasers that consist of microwaves with the capacity to render equipment,
weapons, and vehicles inoperative. Scientists are devising unmanned aerial systems
which is a group of small drones that travel in a pack and perform together. These
UASs would have the firepower and endurance of larger drones. The Air Force is
investigating and experimenting with a unique scheme of overrunning the
assailants with a swarm of disposable small-scale drones instead of soldiers. With
the emergence and evolution of drones, Paul Scharre stated that he believed down
the road they could have some pretty significant changes in terms of how militaries
fight (Swarts).
The United States should modify the chain of command that governs and
oversees the drone program. If the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) of the
Department of Defense (DOD) was given total authority to regulate and monitor
UAV raids, then the agency activities would be superintended by the DOD Title 10
(Zenko). This armed services doctrine would require the JSOC to clarify methods of
targeting terrorists, strategies for preventing civilian deaths as well as statistical
information from past strikes. The government would be enabled to establish valid
and accurate data that would clear up delusions about non-military personnel
fatalities. The military can accept responsibility for their strikes. The CIA can
continue to serve their purpose of gathering intelligence and information instead of
targeting and executing rebels. One supervision procedure would be used to target
the oppositional threats. Another option to prevent abuse of the militarys
capabilities is the inclusion of a separate court system that manages and reviews
the RPA campaign (Roberts). Both programs would bring closure to the
confidentiality of the military and criticism of the utilization of drones. More precise
methods would be used to pinpoint terrorists and determine when to attack. The

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result would be a decrease in civilian casualties. U.S citizens would be more
accepting of the governments use of UAVs against foreign countries if the structure
for oversight and regulation was improved and publicized.
America is using expendable and economical remotely piloted aircrafts
because it is the most accessible mode to undermining hostiles through exact and
precise bombings that have a marginal blast radius. Middle- Eastern residents are
sheltered from detrimental invasions, and rampant corruption. If the conflicts in the
Middle East incurred significant military casualties, the government would
consequently lose public support for the war. The radicals policy of operating
confidentially in disperse geographical regions causes the government to view
drones as the only realistic solution. UAVs are the next revolution in warfare that
will grow advanced capabilities and applications. America should be cautious of the
precedent that it is establishing. The U.S does not want to incite a continuous and
boundless battle that generates a dependence on drones. The government should
revise the framework for controlling strikes to prevent this technology from
becoming disadvantageous.