A new report has revealed the United States has a secret drone base inside Saudi Arabia. According to The New York Times, the CIA first used the base in 2011 to kill the Muslim cleric and U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen. The revelation came two days before a Senate hearing to confirm counterterrorism adviser John Brennan as director of the CIA. Brennan is a former CIA station chief in Saudi Arabia who reportedly worked closely with the Saudis to gain approval for the remote base. The news comes a day after NBC News published a secret Justice Department memo outlining the Obama administration’s legal rationale for assassinating U.S. citizens overseas even when there is no intelligence indicating the targeted individual is engaged in an active plot to attack the United States. On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney was asked about the assassination program. This is part of his response.

Jay Carney: “We have acknowledged, the United States, that sometimes we use remotely piloted aircraft to conduct targeted strikes against specific al-Qaeda terrorists in order to prevent attacks on the United States and to save American lives. We conduct those strikes because they are necessary to mitigate ongoing actual threats, to stop plots, prevent future attacks, and, again, save American lives. These strikes are legal, they are ethical, and they are wise. The U.S. government takes great care in deciding to pursue an al-Qaeda terrorist, to ensure precision, and to avoid loss of innocent life.”