He was a boy who hadn't seen his father in two years

[hue]

39. Where is the culpability for the adults he was with?? He was with known terrorists!

It is heartbreaking to know this child/Boy--a US citizen-- was killed in Yemen. Yet He "snuck away" from home/ran away from the home He lived in with His Grandfather who was raising Him to find His Father who He knew was being targeted by the US. Any child who runs away from the safety of their home is at risk whether they live in the US or any other country in the world.
The US government did not know who was accompanying the terrorists they were targeting. Surely they did not know of Abdulrahman al-Awlaki's quest to find His father. The deserts of Yemen are not safe places for many reasons.
So why did the group of men He was with not send Him back to His Grandfather's? Abdulrahman knew He was doing wrong as He wrote a letter to His Mother regarding His running away. And why is there no mention of the lack of value for this Child's life from the adults who actually knew who He was and His age?? If they loved and respected His father they would have protected and honored his Son.
Drones are used for many reasons; they do not risk US lives, they are able to fly--for the most part--quietly and go to places our forces cannot easily reach. The are more covert than our obvious forces. They are actually less expensive than manned expeditions. They kill less civilians than for example carpet bombing of years ago. Drones are a result of an effort to minimize human loss. It is and was known that American citizens' safety was not and cannot be guaranteed in Yemen.
This is not a cut and dry case of our military carelessly or willfully killing a US citizen. The target was a group of terrorists including a known leader who had openly waged jihad on the US; al-Qaeda leader Ibrahim al-Banna who was killed in that strike. Other members of the targeted group were known terrorists as well. So did they care about al Awlaki's son?? Did they care even a little--a fraction of what we seem to care in hindsight??
And how was our military to know the Boy was not simply a driver, mechanic, or terrorist in training??