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Sri Lanka condemns use of drones to counter terrorism

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Press Trust of India Colombo
Sri Lanka has condemned the use of drones by certain countries for combating terrorism and said it violates the international humanitarian law.

The Sri Lankan delegation at the UN Human Rights Council has said the use of remotely piloted aircraft or armed drones result in killing of civilians and the matter should be "promptly investigated".

"We are deeply concerned about the civilian casualties including women and children resulting from the indiscriminate use of remotely piloted aircraft or armed drones for combat purposes," a statement made at the Human Rights Council said.

"In this context Sri Lanka supports the calls by the Council to ensure that incidents of killing of civilians during the use of remotely piloted aircraft or armed drones are promptly investigated in a transparent and accountable manner and victims are appropriately compensated", it said.
 

The island nation said the possibility of drones falling into the hands of non-state actors or terrorist entities should not be disregarded as this would create a serious threat to international peace, security and human rights.

America has used unmanned armed drones several times in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Sudan, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia to kill suspected Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.

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First Published: Sep 22 2014 | 9:05 PM IST

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