How many military strikes did the Obama administration conduct in foreign countries between 2009 and 2017?

1. Different tallies, different definitions — why the numbers diverge

Counting “strikes” depends on where you draw geographic and legal lines. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) produced formal counts for “areas of active hostilities” and reported 473 strikes from 20 January 2009 through 31 December 2015, then reported another 53 strikes in those same regions for 2016, yielding 526 for that span ^[1]. Independent organizations include strikes outside ODNI’s categories (for example strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia that ODNI may have excluded or classified differently) and therefore report higher totals — the Bureau of Investigative Journalism put the tally at 563 strikes in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen during Obama’s administration ^[2]. The Council on Foreign Relations used yet another aggregation and reported roughly 542 strikes ^[3].

2. Sources reflect different scopes and methods

Independent trackers like the Bureau and New America compile press reports, local sources and military releases; ODNI relies on government reporting rules and the “areas of active hostilities” classification that the administration itself used to narrow what it disclosed ^{[1] [2]}. Snopes summarizes this: ODNI’s official reports show 473 strikes through 2015 and 53 more in 2016 , while non-governmental tallies range from about 542 to 571 or 563 depending on which countries and types of strikes they include ^{[1] [2]}.

3. Geographic and temporal caveats matter

Many public tallies concentrate on Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia because those were theaters where covert strikes increased and where outside monitors could track incidents; other theaters (Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria) were sometimes counted under different categories or described separately ^{[2] [1]}. ODNI’s reports explicitly covered “areas of active hostilities,” which shaped what was reported publicly; independent trackers often include strikes the government categorized differently or did not publicly acknowledge ^{[1] [2]}.

4. Civilian casualty figures and contested narratives

Counts of strikes feed directly into disputes over civilian harm. The Bureau reported between 384 and 807 civilian deaths in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen across its 563-strike tally ^[2]. ODNI provided narrower official fatality ranges for the strikes it acknowledged; independent groups and human-rights organizations have repeatedly contested the government’s low civilian counts and criticized “signature strikes” and the vagueness of targeting criteria ^{[1] [4]}.

5. What a simple answer would miss

A single headline number — “Obama ordered X strikes” — masks key disagreements among credible sources about which events qualify, how to count multi-weapon or chained attacks, and whether classified or deniable operations are included. Snopes noted the ODNI official figures (473 + 53) while pointing to higher independent estimates ^[1]. The Bureau’s 563 figure captures a broader set of incidents across Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen ^[2]. The Council on Foreign Relations’ analysis noted yet a different total and emphasized policy consequences ^[3].

6. Bottom line for readers

Available reporting does not deliver a single universally accepted tally; government ODNI reports document 526 strikes through 2016 (473 to end‑2015 plus 53 in 2016) while independent trackers place the total higher — commonly cited figures include about 542, 563 or ~571 strikes depending on methodology ^{[1] [3] [2]}. Readers should treat any single number as a shorthand that reflects specific counting rules and political choices about disclosure.