News
Sunday, September 18, 2011
US has right to pursue terrorists unilaterally
* Brennan says US can launch pre-emptive action against suspects it believes present an imminent threat wherever they are
* Anti-terror campaign must go beyond Afghanistan
CAMBRIDGE: A top US anti-terror adviser has said that the United States reserves the right to take unilateral action against terrorists if other governments are unwilling or unable to take necessary actions themselves.
John Brennan, President Barack Obama’s top adviser for counter-terrorism and homeland security, also criticised attempts by some lawmakers to ensure that military, rather than civilian courts deal with terror suspects.
America’s anti-terror campaign must go beyond “hot” battlefields in Afghanistan but legal curbs could constrain its action, he said.
Brennan’s speech at Harvard Law School later on Friday laid out the legal questions surrounding US counter-terrorism operations.
“The United States does not view our authority to use military force against al Qaeda as being restricted solely to ‘hot’ battlefields like Afghanistan,” he said.
“We reserve the right to take unilateral action,” Brennan said
However, he added, “that does not mean we can use military force whenever we want, wherever we want.
“International legal principles, including respect for a state’s sovereignty and the laws of war, impose important constraints on our ability to act unilaterally and on the way in which we can use force-in foreign territories.”
Under international law, the US can protect itself with pre-emptive action against suspects the US believes present an imminent threat, wherever they are, he said. afp
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk