Antiwar.com Blog

A recent article in The National Interest captured an open secret: Donald Trump has been using drone strikes far more than Barack Obama ever did.

The Pentagon likes to depict such strikes as incredibly accurate, with few or even no innocents killed. Such a portrayal is inaccurate, however, since “precision” bombing isn’t precise. Intelligence is often wrong. Missiles don’t always hit their targets. Explosions and their effects are unpredictable.

Recognizing those realities, are drone strikes also cowardly?

America likes to fancy itself the “home of the brave,” a land of “heroes” and “warriors.” But how heroic is it to launch a Hellfire missile from a drone, without any risk to yourself? Aren’t warriors supposed to be on the receiving end of elemental violence as well as being the inflictors of it?

Continue reading “William J. Astore asks: Are Drone Strikes Cowardly?”

For the first time ever, the United States has declared a foreign country’s military force a “terrorist organization.” Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has most recently been fighting al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria, but Trump has accused Iran of harboring al-Qaeda. Iran has returned the “favor,” designating the US Central Command (CENTCOM) a “terrorist organization.” Is this the set-up for war with Iran? Tune in to today’s Ron Paul Liberty Report:

Reprinted from The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity.

Entirely unexpectedly, I have been down in London this last three days outside and around the Ecuadorian Embassy, following WikiLeaks’ announcement that their sources indicate Julian might be expelled within hours or days. Plainly Julian’s position within the Embassy has deteriorated fundamentally, to the extent he is now treated openly as a closely guarded prisoner. I still have not myself been granted permission to visit him and he is now very isolated.

Nothing has happened so far this weekend, though I stated from the start that if the police were going to move in, the most likely time would be 4am on Monday morning. There is a thought that the massive media presence occasioned by WikiLeaks’ announcement may have succeeded in deterring President Lenin Moreno from the expulsion. Let us hope that will prove the case.

Continue reading “On the Pavement With WikiLeaks”

Big Government lives on the public believing in Big Lies. The lies are all meticulously maintained by a gargantuan propaganda apparatus that encompasses government schools, government-licensed mainstream media, Hollywood, major sports, and on and on…From time-to-time heroic individuals slip through the cracks and alert the public about the truth. Needless to say, Big Government and its propaganda apparatus never takes it well. Ron Paul discusses on today’s Liberty Report!

Reprinted from The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity.

Originally appeared on The American Conservative.

Saudi coalition planes bombed the area next to a girls’ school in Sanaa earlier today, killing at least 11 and injuring dozens more:

At least eleven schoolgirls have been killed by an explosion at a warehouse in Yemen, medical officials say.

A total of 54 people in Sanaa have been wounded with eleven children in nearby schools pronounced dead after a metal workshop exploded.

Continue reading “Saudi Coalition Airstrikes Kill 11 Yemeni Girls”

The Committee for Responsible Foreign Policy put on a panel presentation to US Senators, staffers, and others on April 2, 2019 at the Kennedy Caucus Room of the Russell Office Building. The speakers included Sen. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. Tom Udall (D-MN) Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO), Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), W. James Antle III (editor, The American Conservative), Robert Borosage (contributing editor, The Nation), Daniel David (Defense Priorities), Jacob Heilbrunn (editor, The National Interest), Rachel Oswald (Congressional Quarterly), Christopher Preble (Cato Institute), Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (professor, College of William and Mary), Nathan Jerauld (Syracuse University). Below are videos of the presentations:

Realism Applied in Afghanistan and Other Theaters

Senate Panel: Should Congress End the War in Afghanistan?

House Panel: The Role of Congress in War Powers