WASHINGTON: The United States denied on Tuesday its drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere infringed upon international law and said it did all it could to avoid civilian casualties.

The comments followed the publication of reports on the US drone war by two human rights groups.

`We are reviewing these reports carefully,` White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

`To the extent these reports claim that the US has acted contrary to international law, we would strongly disagree.

`The administration has repeatedly emphasised the extraordinary care that we take to make sure counter-terrorism actions are in accordance with all applicable laws.

Carney also said that by deciding to use drone aircraft against terrorist suspects, rather than sending in troops or using other weapons, Washington was `choosing the course of action least likely to result in the loss of innocent life`.-AFP