Breaking News - UN to investigate drone attacks

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Julianne Showalter / AFP - Getty Images fileThis undated US Air Force photo shows an MQ-1 "Predator" drone as it prepares for takeoff in Southwest Asia.By Brenda Goh, ReutersLONDON - The United Nations launched  an inquiry on Thursday into the use of unmanned drones in counter-terrorism  operations, after criticism of the number of innocent civilians killed by the  aircraft.  

The inquiry, announced in London, will investigate 25 drone  strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan and the Palestinian  territories.

Follow @NBCNewsWorld Most attacks with unmanned aerial vehicles have been by the  United States. Britain and Israel have also used them, and dozens more states  are believed to possess the technology.

"The plain fact is that this  technology is here to stay, and its use in theaters of conflict is a reality  with which the world must contend," said inquiry leader Ben Emmerson, the U.N.  special rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights.

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