Photo credit: AP
An unmanned U.S. Predator drone flies over Kandahar Air Field, southern Afghanistan, on a moon-lit night (Jan. 31, 2010)

“But the U.S. Constitution requires due process when life is at stake.”

“The Obama administration, having killed a 16-year-old American boy, refuses to explain why in court.

The boy, Abdulrahman Al-Aulaqi, was born in Denver and lived there until he was 7, when his family moved to Yemen. Like many American kids, he had a Facebook page and a love of the “Simpsons.” No one ever accused him of any wrongdoing. Yet on Oct. 14, 2011, a U.S. drone missile killed him and his teenage cousin while they were eating dinner at an open-air restaurant.

On Dec. 14, 2012, the Justice Department asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit in which Abdulrahman’s grandfather, Nasser Al-Aulaqi, is asking for an official explanation about why the boy died.

Until now, only unofficial explanations have been offered.

One anonymous government official told the media Abdulrahman’s death was a mistake.”

“And if the government made a mistake, it should explain why.”

“In court, government officials provided no explanation at all. Their response boiled down to an assertion that the government has the authority to kill Americans without having to account to any court for its actions.

But the U.S. Constitution requires due process when life is at stake. The government cannot be permitted to deprive an American child of his life without any judicial review, even after the fact,”
quoting Hina Shamsi is the director of the American Civil Liberties Union National Security Project and Vincent Warren is the executive director of the Center for Constitutional Rights in the Long Island edition of Newsday.
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