Modern Warfare

U.S. Drones Anger Iraq

Left behind to protect embassies and consulates.

The small fleet of U.S. surveillance drones in Iraq to help protect embassies and consulates is provoking outrage among senior Iraqi officials. In a statement, the State department confirmed the continued presence of its small drones, saying, “The department does have a UAV program. The UAVs being utilized by the State Department are not armed, nor are they capable of being armed.” But top Iraqi officials said they had never been consulted about the program. Acting minister of the interior, Adnan al-Asadi, said, “Our sky is our sky, not the USA’s sky.” The State department is reportedly considering using unarmed surveillance drones in “high-threat” countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan in the future.