Drones: The Face of the War on Terror

A drone strike that killed an alleged planner of the 2013 Kenyan mall massacre is the latest victory for a U.S. campaign that has taken out more than 500 suspected terrorist leaders since shortly after the 9/11 attacks.

September 2011: Anwar al-Awlaki, Killed in Yemen.

Most have been drone strikes, the Obama administration's weapon of choice. It has authorized at least 450 attacks by unmanned aircraft, according to Micah Zenko, an analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Wednesday, the Pentagon announced that Adan Garar, a member of al-Shabaab's intelligence and security wing, was killed in southwestern Somalia on March 12 as he traveled in a vehicle.

"None of this would have been imaginable 14 years ago," Zenko said. "Now these are not a big deal."

The reason is simple. The unmanned aircraft provide the administration an accurate way of striking enemies while minimizing risks for U.S. personnel. They can control the weapons from American bases thousands of miles from the mountains of Pakistan or deserts of Yemen.

March 2015: Adan Garar, suspected of 
helping to plan and carry out the Westgate
 Mall attack. Killed in Somalia.

That is particularly attractive for an administration that wants to avoid committing ground troops in the Middle East but continues to battle extremists in far corners of the globe.

Outside the USA, the strikes have been controversial and triggered resentment. Critics of American foreign policy accuse the United States of killing innocent civilians in the strikes. Pakistan's government, which says it's an ally in the fight against global terrorism, has often been vocal in lashing out at the use of drone strikes in remote parts of the country.

"Everyone except Israel and the United States hates them (drone strikes)," Zenko said. "In some areas where operations occur, drones have become the face of U.S. policy."

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