Mmmm! Sounds familiar - Here in the UK a period of House arrest was applied, without any legal sanction, against actavists during the Miners Strike of the Mid 1980's.At choke points on the Motorways, the Thames and Severn Crossings, the police would stop, detain, and turn back any suspected actavists.
The problem is if you give authority a power the odds are that it will be misused.
(BTW I concur that the USAF is not deliberatly targeting civilians but no matter how "smart" the weapon some target drift will occour through human error, bad intelligence, or what you will. Or just the habit some states have of placing military targets in close proximity to the Red Cross/Crescent.)
Question - InObu the report you posted seems a little subjective - has the "otherside" been reported ?
Gareth