The
EDITORIALLY INDEPENDENT. EST. 2010 14th November 2015
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Lion
Drones
COMMENT
Targeted Assassinating is Now OK, CameronCondones State Terrorism
Terrence Sibley Web Editor The western media celebrates the assassination of well-known political strawman ‘Jihadi John’ by the United States Government. The assassination was carried out by the extensive U.S. drone program operating in the Middle East, most prolifically in Syria and Pakistan, which is operating somehow above international law and above each nation’s sovereignty. Despite numerous studies pointing out that such assassination campaigns create more insurgents than they kill the program is currently being extended. When David Cameron said that targeting ‘Jihadi John’ was ‘the right thing to do’ I don’t think anyone noticed the fact that this means that now we have a prime minister that condones the assassination of people that he believes are a threat. Such a campaign of targeted assassinations currently being carried out in our name is, if the word means anything, terrorism. If you look at the UK’s Terrorism Act 2000 it is defined as follows:
(1) In this Act “terrorism” means (e) is designed seriously to interfere with the use or threat of action where: or seriously to disrupt an electronic system.
(a) the action falls within subsection (2), It is no stretch of the imagination that the drone strike campaign in the Middle East (b) the use or threat is designed to in- falls into this definition neatly. The drone fluence the government or to intimidate strikes continue to rack up an unacceptthe public or a section of the public and able toll of civilian casualties (“collateral damage” which during a 5 month period (c) the use or threat is made for hit 90%), not to mention the infrastructure the purpose of advancing a politi- damage, all in the hope that the general pubcal, religious or ideological cause. lic will be too afraid or intimidated to support the insurgents and that the insurgents themselves will be defeated, advancing the (2) Action falls within this subsection if it: political and ideological cause of being ‘anti-extremism’ and ‘anti-fundamentalism’. (a) involves serious violence against a person, I hope you will all join me in scorning the distasteful and tragic way in which the main(b) involves serious damage to property, stream media is handling this issue. It is without knowledge, tact, care or intelligence. The (c) endangers a person’s life, other than killing of any man by our government or with that of the person committing the action, the consent of our government should always be looked upon with extreme scrutiny, it is (d) creates a serious risk to the health or safe- no laughing matter, or cause for celebration. ty of the public or a section of the public or