Patterns of blowback from drone strikes are identified by looking at the effects of the (intensification) of the target killings by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which have become the central element of the United States’ counter-terror operation in the FATA. Hudson, Ownes and Flannes (2011) argue that drone strikes threaten to destabilise Pakistan and worsen the relationship between the United States and Pakistan. Moreover, they find that these strikes spark the wish for retaliation against the United States, radicalise the local population and offer fertile ground for recruitment of extremist militias, and further complicate the United States’ strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Source:

Hudson, L., C. Owens, and M. Flannes. 2011. ‘Drone Warfare: Blowback from the New American Way of War’. Middle East Policy 18 (September).