Used sparingly in the last days of the Bush Administration, drone strikes have soared over the past several years under President Obama, with the United States killing thousands in strikes across the planet.

So far US officials have ditched responsibility purely on the president insisting whoever he kills must be legal, but as killings grow, various US allies the world over are finding themselves increasingly culpable by way of intelligence sharing, and fearing lawsuits.

Noor Khan, a British citizen from Pakistan, has been trying to sue the British government over a US drone strike that killed his father, a tribal elder with no apparent militant ties.

The British government has been fighting to block the lawsuit, arguing it could “harm ties with the US,” but higher courts continue to hear appeals on the matter and, assuming they fail in sweeping the elder Khan’s killing under the rug, the precedent could open the floodgates for lawsuits against several nations playing a part in the US drone wars.

Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz

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