Biden halts drone strikes outside of war zones

President Joe Biden has suspended drone strikes outside of war zones where US forces are operating, reversing the policy of his predecessor Donald Trump, who had given the military free rein in countries such as Somalia. Any drone strikes planned against jihadist groups outside of Afghanistan, Syria or Iraq will have to be approved by the White House, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Monday. The New York Times said the new guidelines had been secretly passed on to military commanders after Biden came to office on January 20, but were only revealed in recent days.