Call for Banning Killer Drones, from Ukraine to Ethiopia

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Reuters reports: “The United States, Britain and France plan to raise alleged Iranian arms transfers to Russia at a closed-door U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday, diplomats said, after Kyiv accused Moscow of using Iranian-origin drones against civilian targets.”

KATHY KELLY, kathy.vcnv@gmail.com, @voiceinwild

NICK MOTTERN, , nickmottern@gmail.com, @dronesban

Kelly and Mottern are with BanKillerDrones which just posted an open letter to UN Secretary General 

António Guterres pleading with him to “seize this moment of public clarity, to demand a total halt to the use of weaponized drones in the Ukraine War and globally, where killer drones are being used by a number of nations to hunt and kill, notably of late, in Gaza, Ethiopia, Somali, Syria and Kurdish regions. This is the moment to stop the spreading scourge of slaughter and terror by weaponized drones.

 

“Killer drones are a particularly inhumane type of warfare with high error rates causing the deaths of civilians. Moreover, killer drones seek to desensitize us from war, make war seem ‘easier’ and thereby increase the chances of yet more wars. This is something we must never allow to happen.

“As you know, drone warfare is not bringing peace but extending war, for example, in Ethiopia, where drones provided to the Ethiopian central government are extending and expanded attacks against the Tigray people. We are sure that you have seen this comment by Steven Ratner, a member of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia, when the commission released its report in September of this year:

‘The Ethiopian military’s increasing use of drones to conduct airstrikes over the last year has changed the conflict landscape. In theory, drones should allow for more precise targeting of military objectives; however, our investigation indicates that their use has exposed civilians to new and heightened risks. Our findings are especially concerning given reports of airstrikes in Tigray since August, which have killed and injured civilians, including children.’

“Now, while the conscience of the world is alerted, is the time to call for an international ban on weaponized drones and an immediate halt in their use.”

For more information, contact at the Institute for Public Accuracy:

 

Sam Husseini, David Zupan,
October 19, 2022

Institute for Public Accuracy

accuracy.org * ipa@accuracy.org
@accuracy * ipaccuracy