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Israeli Drone Commander Took Life and Death Decisions in Gaza

(Telegraph-UK) David Blair - Major Yair, 31, one of Israel's most experienced drone commanders, served throughout the last three wars in Gaza. As the mission commander of a Heron TP drone, it fell to Major Yair (not his real name) to decide whether killing the human beings appearing on his computer screen would save more lives than leaving them unscathed. Today, 65% of Israel's military air operations are conducted by drones. Major Yair stressed how he was constrained by rules of engagement designed to avoid innocent deaths. One sequence shot by a Heron showed four men preparing to launch a salvo of rockets under a screen of trees. Seconds later, the men were shown running to a nearby street filled with children. "They're untouchable now," he said. "It is sometimes frustrating because you feel that you're fighting with your hands tied. There are a lot of situations where you see your targets, but you will not engage because they're next to kindergartens, because they're driving with their wives and their kids."
2014-11-21 00:00:00
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