The U.S. government can legally use lethal force against its citizens overseas who are involved in terrorist plots targeting the country, the Attorney-General has said.
Addressing students and faculty of the Northwestern University Law School in Chicago on Monday, Eric Holder said use of lethal force would be governed by the laws of war, but sometimes the government had to act quickly, making it impractical to seek permission from a court.
According to him, the law allows that if "capture is not feasible," the government can act to kill U.S. citizens who "have decided to commit violent acts against their own country from abroad."
But he made it clear that before taking action, the government had to make sure through "thorough and careful review" that the suspect posed an "imminent threat" of attack against the country.
The Obama administration came under fire for the killing of U.S.-born radical Muslim cleric and al-Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen in September last.
Holder of U.S.-Yemeni dual citizenship, he was believed to be the spiritual leader of the Yemeni branch of the terror network.
On the U.S. government's decisions to prosecute some al-Qaeda suspects in military commissions while sending others to civilian courts, Holder specified Awlaki's role in ordering the botched bombing of a U.S. airliner in December 2009.
Holder warned that America would "likely continue to face terrorist threats that, at times, originate with our own citizens," and added that in this context, "we simply cannot afford to wait until deadly plans are carried out; and we will not."
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