President Barack Obama pauses as he speaks in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 23, 2015. The president took full responsibility for deaths of American, Italian hostages, expresses apologies. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
A U.S. drone strike on a terrorist compound in Pakistan in January accidentally killed two Westerners being held hostage, including an American aid worker, the White House said Thursday.
The drone strike in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region accidentally killed Dr. Warren Weinstein, an American held by al Qaeda since 2011, and Giovanni Lo Porto, an Italian national who had been held hostage since 2012. It’s believed to be the first time that the CIA’s drone operations in Pakistan have killed an American.
An American al Qaeda member also was killed in the strike, and another American-born terrorist was killed in a different operation, U.S. officials said.
At a hastily arranged appearance at the White House, President Obama said the operation was “fully consistent” with U.S. guidelines for counterterrorism strikes in the region, and he blamed the episode on the “fog of war.” He said he has ordered a review to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
