A year ago, 8-year-old Nabeela ventured outside while her 68-year-old grandmother Mamana Bibi picked vegetables in their family’s large, open field. Moments later, this beloved grandmother was blasted to pieces by not one, but two US drone missiles apparently aimed directly at her. Nabeela and other nearby grandchildren were injured when the exploding missile lodged shrapnel in their bodies.
One year later, the US government has not even acknowledged Mamana’s death. Now Nabeela wonders whether she will be next. How would you feel if this happened to your family?
No one is alleging Mamana did anything wrong. Her fatal “mistake” was living in North Waziristan, a region in Pakistan pummeled by US drone strikes.
Today, Amnesty International released a comprehensive report documenting dozens of killings and utter destruction caused by US drone strikes, including the unlawful killing of Mamana Bibi. We interviewed 60 survivors and eyewitnesses, who describe a daily life of inescapable violence – death from above, and attacks on the ground by Pakistani forces, Taliban and Al-Qa-ida-linked groups.
In May of this year President Obama pledged to increase transparency about drone strikes. Five months later, nothing has changed. No new information about drone policy. No legal framework for when and why the US would use this deadly force. No acknowledgment of responsibility. No investigations into cases like Mamana’s.
Drone strikes have destroyed families and fomented hate against the US. Mamana’s grandchildren deserve better than this. They deserve answers. They deserve justice. Stand up for Mamana’s grandchildren. Click here to demand answers from President Obama about Mamana’s death by US drone strike.