In a joint statement, the ACLU and other human rights and civil liberties organizations expressed deep concerns about the Trump administration’s reported changes to U.S. rules for killings abroad, its dramatic increase in lethal operations, and its increased secrecy. The Trump administration is also reportedly giving the CIA an expanded role in carrying out drones strikes, but with less oversight.
The new secret Trump administration rules will likely lead to an increase in unlawful killings and civilian casualties, even as the government prevents the public from being informed about some of the most important decisions it makes involving life and death.
People in the areas most affected by U.S. lethal strikes say that it is the absence of transparency and accountability — including even a simple acknowledgment of the cause of a loved one’s death — that weighs most heavily on them.
The coalition makes recommendations to bring the U.S. back in line with its international law obligations and to ensure it provides transparency and accountability.
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