Peter J. Leithart makes the distinction between just war theory and the illusion of just bombing
Hilary Clinton had some stiff opposition last week in Pakistan. Everywhere she went in her dazzling blue pants suit, Pakistanis raged about US policy in Afghanistan and along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. One woman pointedly asked, Do the US drone bombings that kill Pakistani civilians count as terrorism? Clinton of course said No.
On most definitions of terrorism, Clinton’s was the right answer. Terrorists deliberately target civilians. Bombs from NATO, mainly US, drones and jets are aimed at terrorists. We have killed civilians, no one knows for sure how many. But we don’t intend to kill civilians.
read the rest at: Peter J. Leithart » Blog Archive » Jus in bello?.
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