Dirty Wars (133 page)

495
one of the closest people to my heart
:
Author interview, Abir al Awlaki, September 2012.

496
“
Ibn al Shaykh
”:
Facebook page of Abdulrahman al Awlaki, screenshot downloaded by author.

496
loved hip-hop music
:
Author interviews, Awlaki family members, August 2012. The following details about Abdulrahman come from the author's interviews with family members.

496
Abdulrahman woke up
:
Author interview, Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012. Details about Abdulrahman's departure come from the author's interview with Awlaki, unless otherwise noted.

496
had turned sixteen
:
Author copy of Abdulrahman al Awlaki's birth certificate.

496
“
I am sorry for leaving
”:
This description of Abdulrahman's note is based on the recollections of family members.

496
“
find his father through him
”:
Author interview, Saleha al Awlaki, September 2012.

498
“
The CIA has become more militarized
”:
Author interview, Philip Giraldi, March 2012. All information and statements attributed to Philip Giraldi are from the author's interview.

498
“
a mini-Special Operations Command
”:
Author interview, State Department liaison, November 2012.

498
“
be a major player
”:
Author interview, Colonel W. Patrick Lang, November 2012.

498
interrogation sessions with Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame
:
Daniel Klaidman,
Kill or Capture: The War on Terror and the Soul of the Obama Presidency
(New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012), p. 263.

499
small house in Khashef
:
David S. Cloud, Jeffrey Fleishman, and Brian Bennett, “U.S. Drone Strike in Yemen Kills U.S.-Born Al Qaeda Figure Awlaki,”
Los Angeles Times
, October 1, 2011.

499
kingdom's payroll
:
Mark Mazzetti, Eric Schmitt, and Robert F. Worth, “C.I.A. Strike Kills U.S.-Born Militant in a Car in Yemen,”
New York Times
, October 1, 2011.

499
seeing drones hovering
:
Sudarsan Raghavan, “Anwar al-Aulaqi, US-Born Cleric Linked to al-Qaeda, Killed in Yemen,”
Washington Post
, October 1, 2011.

499
took operational control
:
Greg Miller, “Strike on Aulaqi Demonstrates Collaboration Between CIA and Military,”
Washington Post
, September 30, 2011.

499
Operation Troy
:
“U.S. Officials Warn of Possible Retaliation After al Qaeda Cleric Is Killed,”
CNN.com
, September 30, 2011.

499
arrived in Ataq
:
Interview, Nasser al Awlaki, August 2012. All information and statements attributed to Nasser al Awlaki come from the author's interview, unless otherwise noted. The details of Abdulrahman's movements in Shabwah are based on the author's interview.

499
“
I called the family house
”:
Interview, Saleha al Awlaki, August 2012. All information and statements attributed to Abdulrahman's grandmother, Saleha, are from the author's interview.

499
“
no qualms
”:
Klaidman,
Kill or Capture
, p. 264.

500
“
Bring it to me and let me decide
”:
Ibid.

500
“
collateral requirements
”:
Ibid.

500
stayed in the same house
:
Ibid.

500
finished their breakfast
:
Sudarsan Raghavan, “Awlaqi Hit Misses Al-Qaeda Bombmaker, Yemen Says,”
Washington Post
, September 30, 2011.

500
JSOC aircraft and ground forces
:
David Martin, “Al-Awlaki Strike Plan Included Jets, Special Ops,”
CBSNews.com
, September 30, 2011.

500
“
eleven missiles missed
”:
Shaykh Harith al Nadari, “My Story with al-Awlaki,”
Inspire
9 (winter 2012), released May 2012.

500
“
Anwar Awlaki has been killed
”:
“Anwar al-Awlaki Killed in Yemen,” AlJazeera.com, September 30, 2011.

500
9:55 a.m. local time
:
“U.S. Officials Warn of Possible Retaliation After al Qaeda Cleric Is Killed.”

500
jambiya
dagger
:
Author interview, Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012.

501
“
Earlier this morning
”:
Transcript, “Remarks by the President at the ‘Change of Office' Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Ceremony,” Fort Myer, VA, September 30, 2011.

501
doubted the official reports
:
Author interviews, Awlaki family members, April 2012.

502
“
when I opened the computer
”:
Author interview, Sarah Khan, April 2012. All information and statements attributed to Sarah Khan are from the author's interview.

502
FBI had told his family
:
Author interview, Sarah Khan, April 2012.

502
“
It has been stated in the media
”:
Tim Funk, “Family of al Qaida Blogger Samir Khan ‘Appalled' by U.S. Actions,”
Charlotte Observer
, October 6, 2011.

502
“
collateral damage
”:
Klaidman,
Kill or Capture
, p. 264.

502
“
It was a twofer
”:
David S. Cloud, Jeffrey Fleishman, and Brian Bennett (Tribune), “U.S. Drones Kill Influential Al-Qaida Operative in Yemen,”
Spokesman Review
, October 1, 2011.

503
“
This is an extraordinary victory
”:
Tim Mak, “Peter King Praises Obama for al-Awlaki Killing,”
Politico
, September 30, 2011.

503
“
significant and imminent threat
”:
Senator Dianne Feinstein and Senator Saxby Chambliss, “Feinstein, Chambliss Release Statement on Death of al-Awlaki,” press release from Senator Feinstein's website, September 30, 2011,
www.feinstein.senate.gov//files/04/90/40/f049040/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=08023496–6f2d-4600-af42-ec-642488cea9
.

503
“
like Osama bin Laden
”:
Transcript, “Remarks at the Kumpris Distinguished Lecture Series,” Clinton Presidential Center, Little Rock, AR, September 30, 2011.

503
“
I'm glad they did it
”:
Craig Whitlock, “U.S. Airstrike That Killed American Teen in Yemen Raises Legal, Ethical Questions,”
Washington Post
, October 22, 2011.

503
“
I do think this was a good strike
”:
Transcript,
State of the Union with Candy Crowley
, CNN, October 2, 2011.

503
“
This individual was clearly a terrorist
”:
Michael Martinez, “U.S. Drone Killing of American al-Awlaki Prompts Legal, Moral Debate,”
CNN.com
, September 30, 2011.

503
“
Another al Qaeda Bites the Dust
”:
Front page of the
New York Post
, October 1, 2011, retrieved from Nexis.

503
“
Remote-Control Really Hits the Splat
”:
Chuck Bennett, “Remote-Control Really Hits the Splat,”
New York Post
, October 1, 2003.

503
“
One Less Terror Big
”:
Joseph Straw, Aliyah Shahid, and Larry McShane, “One Less Terror Big: Al Qaeda Loses Leader in Attack,”
Daily News
(New York), October 1, 2011.

503
“
Awlaki was born here
”:
Martinez, “U.S. Drone Killing of American al-Awlaki Prompts Legal, Moral Debate.”

504
“
crossed a dangerous divide
”:
Representative Dennis Kucinich, “Kucinich on the Extrajudicial Killing of Anwar al-Awlaki: Wrong Legally, Constitutionally and Morally,” press release from Representative Kucinich's website, September 30, 2011,
http://kucinich.house.gov/news/documents-ingle.aspx?DocumentID=262506
.

504
“
After several unsuccessful efforts
”:
Glenn Greenwald, “The Due-Process-Free Assassination of U.S. Citizens Is Now Reality,”
Salon.com
, September 30, 2011.

504
“
Remember that there was great controversy
”:
Transcript, “With Death of Anwar al-Awlaki, Has U.S. Launched New Era of Killing U.S. Citizens Without Charge?”
Democracy Now!
September 30, 2011.

504
“
there isn't a government on the planet
”:
Doyle McManus, “Who Reviews the U.S. ‘Kill List'?”
Los Angeles Times
, February 5, 2012.

505
“
There's a process
”:
Brian Witte (AP), “Rep. Ruppersberger Discusses al-Awlaki Death,”
FederalNewsRadio.com
, September 30, 2011.

505
“
It's important for the American people to know
”:
Author interview, Senator Ron Wyden, March 2012.

507
encouraged him to get out with his cousins
:
Author interviews, Awlaki family members, January and August 2012. Details of Abdulrahman's activities on the night of October 14 are from the author's interviews, unless otherwise noted.

507
seventeen-year-old cousin, Ahmed
:
Author interview, Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012.

507
“
Some of our relatives went
”:
Ibid.

507
“
military-aged
”:
Hamza Hendawi (AP), “Yemen: Abdul-Rahman Al-Awlaki, Anwar Al-Awlaki's Son, Among Al Qaeda Militants Killed in U.S. Drone Strike,”
Huffington Post
, October 15, 2011.

507
while meeting with Ibrahim al Banna
:
Ibid.

507
“
To kill a teenager is just unbelievable
”:
Peter Finn and Greg Miller, “Anwar al-Awlaki's Family Speaks Out Against His Son's Death in Airstrike,”
Washington Post
, October 17, 2011.

507
“
When he was killed by the US government
”:
Author interview with Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012. All information and statements attributed to Nasser al Awlaki are from the author's interview, unless otherwise noted.

508
“
We have seen press reports
”:
Finn and Miller, “Anwar al-Awlaki's Family Speaks Out.”

508
“
We watched with surprise and condemnation
”:
Statement released by the Awlaki family, October 2011, available at
http://upstatedroneaction.org/word-press/2011/11/23/a-family-mourns/
.

508
“
People flocked to our house
”:
Author interview, Abir al Awlaki, August 2012.

509
“
I look around the house
”:
Author interview, Saleha al Awlaki, September 2012.

509
JSOC strike
:
Greg Miller, “Under Obama, an Emerging Global Apparatus for Drone Killing,”
Washington Post
, December 27, 2011.

509
“
the two kill lists don't match
”:
Ibid.

509
was, in fact, still alive
:
Author interview with a JSOC official, January 2013.

509
closed briefing
:
Craig Whitlock, “U.S. Airstrike That Killed American Teen in Yemen Raises Legal, Ethical Questions,”
Washington Post
, October 22, 2011.

509
“
These lies and allegations
”:
Agence France-Presse, “Yemen's Al-Qaeda Denies Death of Its Media Chief,” October 30, 2011.

510
“
I do know this
”:
Transcript,
State of the Union with Candy Crowley
, CNN, March 11, 2012.

510
“
I'm convinced
”:
Representative Peter King, interview by Ryan Devereaux, March 2012.

510
“
that's the breaks
”:
“Romney Rep. Peter King: Presidential Kill List Totally Constitutional,” video, 1:53, Luke Rudkowski of We Are Change interviewing Representative King at an event for the October 22, 2012, presidential debate,
WeAreChange.org
, October 23, 2012.

510
“
you should have a far more responsible father
”:
“Obama Top Adviser Robert Gibbs Justifies Murder of Sixteen Year Old American Citizen,” YouTube video, 3:26, Sierra Adamson of We Are Change interviewing Robert Gibbs at an event for the October 22, 2012, presidential debate, posted by “wearechange,” October 23, 2012,
www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed-ded&v=7MwB2znBZig
.

510
“
It is up to the US government to be sure
”:
Author interview, Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012.

511
“
an outrageous mistake
”:
Karen DeYoung, “A CIA Veteran Transforms U.S. Counterterrorism Policy,”
Washington Post
, October 24, 2012.