Lawsuit Challenges Govt’s Right to Assassinate US Citizens
ACLU, CCR Insist Constitution, International Law Prohibit Summary Killings
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) filed a lawsuit today challenging the right of the Obama Administration to assassinate American citizens outside of any current war zones.
“The United States cannot simply execute people, including its own citizens, anywhere in the world based on its own say-so,” insisted the Executive Director of the CCR Vince Warren.
The Obama Administration however insists that it can do exactly that, when National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair announced to Congress that US-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, against whom no charges have been filed, was on the official CIA “assassination list.”
Though officials never explained where this new power to execute without charges came from, National Counterterrorism Chief Michael Leiter later explained that it would be “irresponsible” not to try to assassinate Awlaki.
The lawsuit is an effort by Awlaki’s father Nasser al-Awlaki to stop the assassination of his son. So far the administration has not addressed this lawsuit.
Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.
Join the Discussion!
We welcome thoughtful and respectful comments. Hateful language, illegal content, or attacks against Antiwar.com will be removed.
For more details, please see our Comment Policy.
