The killing of US citizen Anwar al Awlaki in Yemen Research Paper

The killing of US citizen Anwar al Awlaki in Yemen - Research Paper Example President Obama sought to justify the killing by stating that Anwar and his Al-Qaeda affiliates guided a failed trial or attempt to bomb an airplane in December 2009 during Christmas celebrations. Further, the president stated that Anwar also directed a failed trial to bomb an American cargo aircraft in 2010 (CBSNEWS.Com, 2012). The killing of Anwar al-Alwaki by a missile assault elicited a heated debate on the U.S justification of using lethal force against American citizens. For the first time since the end of American civil war, the U.S government had conducted an intentional and deliberate killing or murder of an American resident or citizen as a wartime foe and in absence of trial. The American government tried to keep the matter a secret but the choice to hunt and murder Anwar became an issue of public debate and scrutiny. Some American wondered the limitation of the powers of the president if he can order the killing of Americans abroad based on secret intelligence. It is significant to note that the killings of Anwar in Yemen brought in new information about the intelligence, military and legal challenges that the U.S government faced. This is because it shows the risks or perils of war, depending on missile strike from drone rarely recognized by the U.S citizens and intricate justifications written for only a selected few officials to read (The New Times, 2013). It is believed that Anwar al-Alwaki and Samir Khan who killed in the drone strike were al-Qaeda operational leader in Yemen. The two were U.S citizens who had never been accused by the American government nor indicted with any crime. The secrecy behind such drone strikes emerged as major issue because of the legal and ethical issues involved in the killings (Wilson Center, 2012). Information from the U.S department of Justice asserted that the drone missile