--- description: The documents include a memo that justifies the 2011 killing of Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen title: Federal Judges Order Release of Anwar al-Awlaki Documents image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt70b61b966af8163b/69868bccadae44ba5d542afb/anwar-al-awlaki.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Foreign Policy](/tag/foreign-policy/) ## Foreign Policy Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Federal Judges Order Release of Targeted Killing Docs by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 21, 2014 9:47 PM CUT  Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric linked to al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, gives a religious lecture in an unknown location in this still image taken from video released by Intelwire.com on Sept. 30, 2011. Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric linked to al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, gives a religious lecture in an unknown location in this still image taken from video released by Intelwire.com on Sept. 30, 2011.Ho New—Reuters by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 21, 2014 9:47 PM CUT Federal judges ordered the U.S. government on Monday to release parts of a memo detailing why it targeted and killed an American who had joined al-Qaeda in 2011. The order overruled a previous decision last year allowing the government to withhold the documents, which explain the targeted killing of Anwar al-Awlaki in a drone strike in Yemen three years ago. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that the Justice Department “waived its right to keep the analysis secret” after it released a “[white paper](http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/sections/news/020413%5FDOJ%5FWhite%5FPaper.pdf "undefined")” justifying the policy of monitoring Americans involved in terrorist activity on foreign soil for targeting and execution, the New York _Times_ [reports](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/22/nyregion/panel-orders-release-of-document-in-targeted-killing-of-anwar-al-awlaki.html "undefined"). “Whatever protection the legal analysis might once have had has been lost by virtue of public statements of public officials at the highest levels and official disclosure of the D.O.J. White Paper,” Judge Jon O. Newman said. The Justice Department released the “white paper” after it was reported by NBC News. The government may redact parts of the memo, the _Times_ reports. It is unclear when these will have to go public. The case is a result of Freedom of Information Act lawsuits filed by the _Times_ and two of its reporters, and the American Civil Liberties Union. The government can still appeal. \[[_NYT_](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/22/nyregion/panel-orders-release-of-document-in-targeted-killing-of-anwar-al-awlaki.html?smid=tw-share&%5Fr=0 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/70973/federal-judges-order-release-of-doj-targeted-killing-docs/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/70973/federal-judges-order-release-of-doj-targeted-killing-docs/"},"headline":"Federal Judges Order Release of Targeted Killing Docs","datePublished":"2014-04-21T21:47:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:25:10.887Z","description":"The documents include a memo that justifies the 2011 killing of Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen","url":"https://time.com/70973/federal-judges-order-release-of-doj-targeted-killing-docs/","keywords":["Foreign Policy","Department of Justice","New York Times"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt70b61b966af8163b/69868bccadae44ba5d542afb/anwar-al-awlaki.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt70b61b966af8163b/69868bccadae44ba5d542afb/anwar-al-awlaki.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric linked to al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, gives a religious lecture in an unknown location in this still image taken from video released by Intelwire.com on Sept. 30, 2011.","caption":"Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric linked to al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, gives a religious lecture in an unknown location in this still image taken from video released by Intelwire.com on Sept. 30, 2011.","creditText":"Ho New—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/foreign-policy/","name":"Foreign Policy"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/70973/federal-judges-order-release-of-doj-targeted-killing-docs/","name":"Federal Judges Order Release of Targeted Killing Docs"}}]}] ```