A/HRC/25/59 III. Civilian impact of remotely piloted aircraft A. Introduction 21. In January 2013, the Special Rapporteur began an inquiry into the use of remotely piloted aircraft, or drones, in extraterritorial lethal counter-terrorism operations, including in the context of asymmetrical armed conflict. The principal aims of the inquiry were: (a) to evaluate allegations that such operations have resulted in disproportionate levels of civilian casualties; (b) make recommendations concerning the duty of States to conduct independent and impartial investigations and to make public the results; and (c) identify the disputed issues of international law relevant to such operations, and to make recommendations aimed at promoting international consensus. 22. On 25 October, the Special Rapporteur presented an interim report to the General Assembly (A/68/389, hereinafter “the interim report”) which sets out a framework for examining the factual and legal issues relevant to his inquiry, by reference to the principles laid down in the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.3 The present report should be read in conjunction with the interim report and the report to the General Assembly by the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions (A/68/382). 23. On 18 December, following the presentation of the Special Rapporteur’s interim report, the General Assembly adopted by consensus resolution 68/178 on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. In paragraph 6 (s) of the resolution, States are urged to ensure that any measures taken or means employed to counter terrorism, including the use of remotely piloted aircraft, comply with their obligations under international law, including the Charter of the United Nations, human rights law and international humanitarian law, in particular the principles of distinction and proportionality. 24. In furtherance of that objective, the present report summarizes developments since the presentation of the Special Rapporteur’s interim report to the General Assembly, including recent trends in civilian casualty rates resulting from the use of remotely piloted aircraft and other significant developments (sect. B below); it presents the conclusions of the Special Rapporteur’s review of 37 strikes in which civilian casualties were reportedly sustained (sect. C below);4 and, in it, the Special Rapporteur makes recommendations to the Council aimed at clarifying and promoting compliance with the relevant principles of international law, including international humanitarian and human rights law. The sample strike analysis in section C below is intended to provide a clear opportunity for the relevant States to fulfil their international legal obligations of transparency and accountability (as described in the interim report) by making public the results of their own inquiries into the sample strikes identified. In order to provide an up-to-date source of information on his continuing inquiries, the Special Rapporteur has set up a dedicated website, which reflects and supplements the content of his reports on remotely piloted aircraft to the General Assembly and the Council: unsrct-drones.com. The Special Rapporteur will continue to seek additional information from States on the legal justifications for the use of deadly force in counter-terrorism operations, as well as the justification for individual attacks. Subject to the consent of the State concerned, the responses received will be posted on the official web page of the mandate. 3 4 See General Assembly resolution 60/288, annex, sect. IV, para. 2. The Special Rapporteur uses the legal standards set out in the interim report as the benchmark for the inclusion of each strike in the present report: see paras. 32–36 below. 5