U.N. watchdog urges Obama to curb drone use, surveillance

By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – A U.N. human rights watchdog called on the Obama administration on Thursday to limit its use of drones targeting suspected al-Qaeda and Taliban militants and to curb U.S. surveillance activities at home and abroad. U.S. drone strikes have led to excessive civilian casualties and unrestricted data collection has eroded the right to privacy, the U.N. Human Rights Committee said in its first report on Washington’s rights record since 2006. “A lot has to do with lack of transparency and oversight,” Swiss lawyer Walter Kaelin, who is among the panel’s 18 independent experts, told a news briefing where the findings were issued. Referring to surveillance by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), Kaelin said: “What we are calling for is that if surveillance is undertaken, it has to be done in line with principles of legality, that there is the need for very clear detailed regulation containing safeguards for those under direct surveillance.