Legal Memo Backing Drone Strike Is Released

A federal court on Monday released a previously secret government memo outlining the legal justification for the 2011 killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen and accused al-Qaeda operative, in a drone strike in Yemen.

The document was released under order of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York and provides the most detailed explanation to date for the legal reasoning behind Awlaki’s killing. Its disclosure also represents a significant capitulation by the Obama administration, which fought for years to keep the memo — as well as many other aspects of its targeted killing program — secret from the public.

“We do not believe that al-Aulaqi’s U.S. citizenship imposes constitutional limitations that would preclude the contemplated lethal action” by the U.S. military or CIA, the memo concluded, clearing the way for a drone strike that would trigger intense legal and political debate.

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