To those living under their shadow, drones are
sci-fi killers, shooting hellfire from the skies and making people prisoners in
their own homes. To the United States government, which uses them to fight
terrorism in dangerous areas of Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia, they’re precision
tools to surgically remove enemies without exposing U.S. troops to harm.
After a six-month hiatus, the U.S. has just
rebooted its drone program against militant bases in Pakistan’s rugged border
land, Waziristan. It’s no small matter because between 2,300 and 3,700 people
have died in strikes in Pakistan since 2004, according to the Bureau of Investigative
Journalism.
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