As President Barack Obama’s administration releases its once-secret guidance on kill and capture operations against terrorist targets outside areas of active hostilities, the UK must look to improve its own transparency.

On Saturday, the Obama administration released a redacted version of its policy on action against terrorist targets outside areas of active hostilities. The 18-page document fills many gaps left by previous statements of US policy and processes for targeted killing, such as President Obama’s speech in May 2013 at the National Defense University and the Justice Department’s “white paper”. It confirms that “operating agencies”, such as the CIA and Defense Department, can formally nominate an individual to be targeted. They must then submit plans to the National Security Staff (NSS) and lawyers across different security agencies.

This article was originally published on Think Defense and Remote Control.