Declassified Memo Released: Drone Killing of American Justified
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Worthy News)– According to a newly declassified Justice Department memo, released by a Federal Appeals Court Monday, the U.S. Government can kill an American overseas if authorities cannot apprehend them, whose “activities pose a continued and imminent threat of violence,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
The document was released with significant redactions, but the general principle behind such a drone strike is evident: When senior government officials conclude a person is actively plotting to use deadly force against Americans, and the U.S. government is unable to apprehend them, officials may use lethal force to kill that person, even if they are a U.S. citizen.
The memo concluded that the use of lethal force is acceptable “at least where high-level government officials have determined that a capture operation overseas is infeasible, and that the targeted person is part of a dangerous enemy force and is engaged in activities that pose a continued and imminent threat to U.S. persons or interests.” — Source
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