U.S. Airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, Versus #Drone Strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia
▻http://blogs.cfr.org/zenko/2016/11/10/us-airstrikes-in-iraq-and-syria-versus-drone-strikes-in-pakistan-yemen-an
On July 1, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released a “Summary of Information Regarding U.S. Counterterrorism Strikes Outside Areas of Active Hostilities.” That release claimed that between January 20, 2009, and December 31, 2015, there were 473 strikes that killed between 2,372 and 2,581 combatants and 64 and 116 noncombatants. Therefore, using the average of the range provided by ODNI, 473 drone strikes killed 90 civilians.
Or, 0.19 civilian is killed for every drone strike in Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia.
And, 0.009 for every airstrike (almost all are manned airstrikes) in Iraq and Syria.
That means that airstrikes in Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia are more than 20 times more likely to kill a civilian than those in Iraq and Syria.