There were sizable gaps in the government data, which covered only strikes “outside areas of active hostilities” — away from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria — from Jan. 20, 2009, to Dec. 31, 2015. The bulk of drone strikes have fallen on remote tribal regions of Pakistan that have long sheltered extremists, but Obama has also bombed places like Yemen, Libya and Somalia. Independent estimates of civilian casualties from U.S. strikes in those theaters have ranged between 200 and 1,000.
Most notably, the figures released Friday were not broken down by year or by country, making it impossible to determine whether civilians are dying in greater or fewer numbers. Aides to Obama had previously said that diplomatic sensitivities — like concerns about fueling anti-American sentiment in Pakistan — would shape the disclosure.
