WASHINGTON: The Obama administration, facing criticism for covert nature of drone operations, Wednesday for the first time publicly acknowledged that US counterterrorism operations overseas have killed four Americans since 2009.
The official revelation came in a letter from Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. to Congress. The letter, however, does not say how the four were killed.
The American media reports say those killed include Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical cleric who was killed in a drone strike in September 2011 in Yemen. The other three killed include Samir Khan, who was killed in the same strike; Awlaki's son Abdulrahman al-Awlaki, who was also killed in Yemen; and Jude Mohammed, who was killed in a strike.
"These individuals were not specifically targeted by the United States," Holder wrote in the letter, cited by major newspaper including The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Holder's letter came ahead of President Barack Obama's speech on Thursday, as he seeks to fulfill his promise to make elements of his controversial counterterrorism policies more transparent and accountable to Congress and the American public.
In a report, the Post noted that Obama is also under pressure to explain how he intends to make even modest progress on other priorities that were centerpieces of a pledge he made at the beginning of his first term. At the top of that list is closing the Guantanamo Bay prison, where 103 of the 166 detainees still in custody are on a hunger strike.
The newspaper also reported that the administration is planning to restart the transfer of the detainees, 86 of whom have been cleared to leave. According to the Post, a White House official said without elaboration that Obama will announce a number of specific steps to advance his goal of closing the facility.
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