A/HRC/44/38 Atlantic Treaty Organization, for example, established civil-military coordination teams responsible for recording and investigating allegations. Efforts to mitigate civilian harm integrate civilian protection at all points in the planning and use of military force. Systematic review of incidents that have caused civilian deaths also help to avoid operational deficiencies. 53 The Special Rapporteur strongly encourages such measures, which should include robust investigations into possible violations of international law. 54 E. Absence of transparency and accountability 22. Echoing the findings of the previous Special Rapporteur,55 the evidence continues to suggest that drone operations are also characterized by violations of the international obligation to investigate56 and to punish, where applicable, those responsible for violations of international humanitarian or human rights law. There is little public disclosure, 57 as targeted killings by drones are wrapped in secrecy extending to the investigation of civilian deaths. 23. Without on-the-ground, post-strike assessments, authorities rely on pre- and poststrike drone-video feeds to detect civilian casualties, leaving potentially significant numbers of civilian casualties, including those misidentified as “enemies”, undiscovered. Studies have shown that, in Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic, initial military estimates missed 57 per cent of casualties.58 While civilians should play a central role in reporting and accountability mechanisms, regrettably there seems to be no reporting mechanism for families affected by drone strikes. Yet, civil society and the media have proven invaluable, including to military authorities, in providing accurate counts of civilian casualties, which is also essential for a fuller picture of the impact of operations.59 Ultimately, however, the lack of transparency and accountability about the extent of armed drones’ operations and the consequent civilian casualties is the result of State policies and legal loopholes. 60 24. Drones sit at the intersection of several oversight regimes but, being intelligence assets, they somehow fall between them. With little or no risk to those directing or operating drones, including of legal accountability, “the typical decision-making barriers to the use of force become eroded … because they do not attract ‘the public scrutiny that a troop deployment invites’”, as then United States President Barrack Obama conceded in May 2013.61 In general, at the domestic level, there seem to be many loopholes to avoid scrutiny, especially because the matter can fall within the remit of many agencies and, at the same time, under the responsibility of none.62 25. Few countries have subjected drones to parliamentary oversight. In general, a country’s lethal use of drones is not subject to prior approval by parliament,63 even though, under a first strike doctrine, their use may trigger an international armed conflict. 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 8 www.cna.org/cna_files/pdf/COP-2014-U-008746-Final.pdf. www.geneva-academy.ch/joomlatools-files/docman-files/Guidelines%20on%20Investigating %20Violations%20of%20IHL.pdf. A/68/382 and Corr.1. The African Commission requested the Niger to launch its own investigation into French and United States drone strikes on its soil. https://civiliansinconflict.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/PDF-Report-for-Website.pdf. Interview with Lawrence Lewis, March 2020. https://civiliansinconflict.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/PDF-Report-for-Website.pdf. See, for example, www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-revocation-reportingrequirement. Michael C. Horowitz, Sarah E. Kreps and Matthew Fuhrmann, “Separating fact from fiction in the debate over drone proliferation”, International Security, vol. 41, No. 2 (Fall 2016); www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/05/23/obama-administration-saw-drone-strikes-as-cure-all-forterrorism. www.opensocietyfoundations.org/publications/armed-drones-in-europe; Jameel Jaffer, The Drone Memos: Targeted Killing, Secrecy, and the Law (The New Press, 2015); interview with Aditi Gupta and Camilla Molyneux, March 2020. For an in-depth analysis of the situation in Europe, see www.opensocietyfoundations.org/ publications/armed-drones-in-europe.