Afghanistan Collapse and Strikes in Somalia Raise Snags for Drone Warfare Rules

But the Biden administration is close to finishing a new playbook for counterterrorism strikes outside conventional war zones.

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has nearly completed a policy to govern counterterrorism drone strikes and commando raids outside conventional war zones, but the abrupt collapse of the Afghan government and a recent flurry of strikes in Somalia have raised new problems, according to current and former officials. The administration has hoped to finish its playbook by the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. It was envisioned as part of a broader recalibration as President Biden seeks to wind down the “forever war” on terrorism and reorient national security policy to how the world has changed since 2001. But his team’s ability to meet that deadline is now in doubt amid rapidly changing events and uncertainties about the future. Many of the same officials who would develop and approve an updated drone plan for Afghanistan are focused on the emergency evacuation operations in Kabul, the capital, officials said.