President Obama has a secret list of suspected terrorists that he personally pores over before initiating drone strikes, The New York Times reports.
The list contains a mug shot and biographies of each suspect targeted for killing, according to The Times. In January 2010, two of those targeted included teenagers, one, as The Times described it, who “looked even younger than her 17 years.”
“If they are starting to use children, we are moving into a whole different phase,” Obama said, according to two anonymous sources quoted in the article. It was unclear whether a drone strike was initiated against the girl or if it was successful.
About every week or so, according to the report, more than 100 members of the government’s national security team meet by teleconference to go over terror suspects’ biographies and recommend which should be killed. From there, a list of “nominations” goes to the White House, where Obama approves every name. Obama signs off on every strike in Yemen and Somalia and some in Pakistan – about a third of all drone strikes.
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