A doubly curious row has broken out in the UK after a drone strike killed two British nationals who were apparently plotting to kill Queen Elizabeth II. Premier David Cameron has said he has no regrets about ordering the strike by the Predator drone, operated remotely by a British air force pilot. The two young Britons were, he said, involved in planning to assassinate the monarch. They had, therefore, been targeted as they traveled in a vehicle in a part of Syria controlled by Daesh (the self-proclaimed IS). The first curious element to this incident is the fury with which human rights organizations and liberal politicians have greeted the killings. In 2013, when Cameron was poised to finally take military action against the Assad regime, the British parliament vetoed the move. When the UK air force joined in airstrikes on Daesh, Cameron had to announce that because of the vote by parliament, these attacks could not include targets in Syria but would be confined to Iraq. Had Cameron got his way in 2013, it might have triggered an intervention by fellow EU states as well as President Barack Obama. That he did not succeed only served to compound the tragedy of the Syrian people. The British premier's excuse for overriding the legislators' ban on the use of force in Syria is that the two young British-born jihadists were involved in a direct threat to the UK and her Queen. This has not stopped human rights activists from protesting. One described the devastating drone strike as “cold-blooded murder” - suggesting somehow that the mass beheadings of Daesh victims is “warm-blooded affection”. Friends of the families of the dead young men also appeared to believe that the British government should be condemned for their deaths. There seemed no recognition that these two British natives had chosen to betray their religion and their country to become terrorists. Opposition politicians meanwhile seem intent on creating as much legal trouble as possible for Cameron, on the basis that he has defied the will of parliament - the ultimate authority. This inquiry will surely be as spurious as it is unwelcome. But it might throw some light on the other curious element to this incident. The drone strike was clearly based on a great deal of intelligence. Not only did the British know about the plot to murder the Queen but they also knew of the movements of the two UK nationals who were, it seems, a key part of the conspiracy. They were, therefore, able to send a Predator drone to kill them. It is not impossible that this could have been an intelligence coup based on a lucky breakthrough. However, it is also highly likely that between them, the Americans and the other powers, including Saudi Arabia, that have joined in the air war against Daesh are gathering an unprecedented level of signals' intelligence about the terrorists. The organization may also have been penetrated by spies. Its leaders certainly think so, because they are frequently executing suspects. Yet this is to overlook the ability of orbiting satellite cameras which can read a car registration from space. Facial-recognition programs identify known terrorists and record new recruits. Those who conceal their features merely advertise their evil status. Therefore, any dispassionate observer would conclude that Daesh terrorists and their blasphemous death cult are doomed.
