New York Times loses drone lawsuit against Obama administration
A US Predator unmanned drone armed with a missile stands on the tarmac of Kandahar military airport in 2010. Drones have been a key element of the fight against al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, Pakistan and elsewhere.
The New York Times lost its latest bid to get more information on the Obama administration's drone strikes.
A federal judge ruled today that the administration did not break the law in refusing the paper's Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) request for materials relating to the targeted kllings of suspected terrorists, Politico reported.
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The Times is seeking legal justification for the drone strikes, according to Reuters.
Reporters Charlie Savage and Scott Shane joined the newspaper in filing the lawsuit in December 2011 after they were denied information about the program, including the killing of U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen.
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The program has come under fire from multiple civil rights groups as a way to kill Americans without due process, although Attorney General Eric Holder has denied that contention, Reuters reported.
The New York Times said it plans to appeal the ruling.