“My life is in your hands," he told Obama. "If you accept the demands, I live; if you don’

For four long years Warren Weinstein, 72 begged the Obama administration to save him from his al Queda captors in Pakistan, now he is dead killed in a drone strike on Al Qaeda in Pakistan.

The Daily Beast reports:

“My life is in your hands," he told Obama. "If you accept the demands, I live; if you don’t accept the demands, I die,” Weinstein said, referring to a list of demands made by al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri last year that included an end to American strikes in Pakistan and the release of al Qaeda and Taliban militants detained at Guantánamo Bay.

The Daily Beast continues:

"We are devastated by this news and the knowledge that my husband will never safely return home," Elaine Weinstein, his wife said in a statement. "We were so hopeful that those in the U.S. and Pakistani governments with the power to take action and secure his release would have done everything possible to do so and there are no words to do justice to the disappointment and heartbreak we are going through."

Mrs. Weinstein criticized the administration that ended up killing her husband.

“Unfortunately, the assistance we received from other elements of the U.S. government was inconsistent and disappointing over the course of three and a half years. We hope that my husband’s death and the others who have faced similar tragedies in recent months will finally prompt the U.S. government to take its responsibilities seriously and establish a coordinated and consistent approach to supporting hostages and their families.”

Nevertheless, Mrs. Weinstein put the blame for her husband's death on Al Qaeda.

“But those who took Warren captive over three years ago bear ultimate responsibility. I can assure you that he would still be alive and well if they had allowed him to return home after his time abroad working to help the people of Pakistan. The cowardly actions of those who took Warren captive and ultimately to the place and time of his death are not in keeping with Islam and they will have to face their God to answer for their actions.”

The New York Times:

WASHINGTON — Two hostages held by Al Qaeda, including an American aid worker, were accidentally killed in an American drone strike inPakistan in January, government officials disclosed on Thursday, prompting President Obama to offer an emotional apology and assume “full responsibility” for their deaths.

The two hostages, Warren Weinstein, an American held by Al Qaeda since 2011, and Giovanni Lo Porto, an Italian held since 2012, died after the American attack on a compound in Pakistan. Officials said they had no idea that the hostages were being held there despite hundreds of hours of surveillance before the strike and that they only learned afterward that the civilians were among the casualties. Mr. Obama came to the White House briefing room shortly after a statement was issued announcing the deaths, appearing unusually affected by the tragedy. “As president and as commander in chief, I take full responsibility for all our counterterrorism operations,” the grim-faced president told reporters. “I profoundly regret what happened,” he added. “On behalf of the United States government, I offer our deepest apologies to the families.”

... The issue of killing Americans through drone strikes has been an acutely sensitive one for Mr. Obama. His administration has concluded that the federal government has the right to use deadly force against Americans tied to Al Qaeda if capture is not feasible. In the case of the two Qaeda figures killed in January, no legal determination would have been needed because it was not known that they were at the bombed sites.

Some members of Congress criticized the administration or called for more oversight. “Warren Weinstein did not have to die,” said Representative Duncan Hunter, Republican of California. “His death is further evidence of the failures in communication and coordination between government agencies tasked with recovering Americans in captivity — and the fact that he’s dead, as a result, is absolutely tragic.” ... Mr. Obama did not sign off on this specific strike, aides said, because he has authorized the C.I.A. and military to carry out drone attacks without further consultation if they fit certain criteria. In his comments, Mr. Obama said the operation that killed the two hostages was conducted “fully consistent with the guidelines” for such missions in the region. He said that it was conducted after hundreds of hours of surveillance had convinced American officials that they were targeting an Al Qaeda compound where no civilians were present and that “capturing these terrorists was not possible.” The president said he had ordered the incident declassified because the families of Mr. Weinstein and Mr. Lo Porto “deserve to know the truth” about what happened. “The United States is a democracy, committed to openness in good times and in bad,” he said. “It is a cruel and bitter truth that in the fog of war generally, and our fight against terrorists specifically, mistakes, sometimes deadly mistakes, can occur.”

So once again a bumbling administration kills an American, though this time it seems to have been a bungled CIA attempt to kill Americans who had collaborated with al Queda not realizing that Warren and another innocents were in harms way. Utterly inept leadership is costing us more each day.

Or have I been eating paint chips again?