AL QAEDA

U.S. Declassifies Covert Wars

But doesn’t mention drone campaigns.

The White House has finally acknowledged that its carrying out attacks in Yemen and Somalia, letting the public in for the first time on its super-secret campaign against al Qaeda in those countries. The semiannual report on U.S. combat operations delivered to Congress Friday reveals that the military has been taking “direct action” which, though the report does not elaborate on what this means, is a term usually used to describe lethal attacks. The report makes no mention of drones. “In all cases we are focused on those al-Qaeda members and affiliates who pose a direct threat to the United States and to our national interests,” the Pentagon’s press secretary explained following the report’s release.