The Amnesty International report, “‘Will I be next?’ U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan,” documents recent drone killings in northwest Pakistan that may amount to war crimes or extrajudicial executions, including the killing of a 68-year-old grandmother and 14-year-old boy. The report documents nine strikes that occurred in 2012 and 2013, based on rare access to the region.
The Human Rights Watch report, “Between a Drone and Al-Qaeda: The Civilian Cost of U.S. Targeted Killings in Yemen,” documents six strikes in Yemen from 2009 to 2013, two of which indiscriminately killed several dozen civilians in violation of the laws of war. The remaining strikes may have targeted individuals not subject to attack or caused disproportionate civilian deaths.
What:
Release of two new reports on U.S. drone strikes and other aerial attacks in Pakistan and Yemen
Who:
Mustafa Qadri, Pakistan researcher at Amnesty International
Naureen Shah, advocacy advisor at Amnesty International USA
Letta Tayler, senior counterterrorism researcher at Human Rights Watch
Andrea Prasow, senior counterterrorism counsel at Human Rights Watch
When:
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. EST
Where:
The National Press Club
Murrow Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20045
Note to journalists: Copies of the reports will be available at the news conference.
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million members in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.