Anti-drone activists plan April Days of Action in US

A group of US activists plan to launch a series of protests in April to generate a public uprising across the country against the government’s deadly drone policy.

The planned protests, dubbed April Days of Action, will begin on April 3 with a rally in New York and will spread nationwide, the website of the British newspaper Guardian reported on Wednesday.

Anti-drones activists plan to stage protest rallies near military bases, universities, and companies involved in President Barack Obama’s policy of targeted killings.

“There is a tremendous amount of skepticism with the public about drone attacks in other countries. There is concern that innocent people are killed and enemies of the United States are being made,” said Nick Mottern, founder of Know Drones, an educational organization that is helping co-ordinate the protests.

The cities targeted by the campaign will include Washington DC, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Honolulu, San Francisco, Sacramento, Minneapolis, Des Moines, and others.

“There is no question that the April Days of Action will exhibit a level of anti-war and civil liberties activism that is unprecedented in recent years,” said Medea Benjamin, founder of veteran anti-war group Code Pink, a women-initiated group for peace and social justice, working to end US funded wars and occupations around the world.

US officials refuse to publicly discuss any details of the covert program and the death toll from drone strikes remains a mystery.

According to the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism, in Pakistan alone 366 strikes have killed up to 3,581 people, with 884 being innocent civilians.

Washington uses assassination drones in several countries, claiming that they target “terrorists.” According to witnesses, however, the attacks have mostly led to massive civilian casualties.