Jung maintains that Washington's drone campaign violates international and German law, because its main victims are civilians. If Leipzig court rules against him, Yung is determined to present his case at the Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe, Yung's lawyer Peter Beker told RIA Novosti.
The Ramstein air base "plays a crucial role" in the US targeted killing campaign, Jung said in a press release. The facility hosts a satellite relay station that sends signals to the drone and back to its operator overseas.
"Ramstein is absolutely essential to the US drone program," former drone pilot Brandon Bryant said last year. "All information and data go through Ramstein. Everything. For the whole world. Also for the CIA operations."
An unnamed source confirmed this assessment in an interview with the Intercept: "Without Ramstein, drones could not function, at least not as they do now."
Ramstein's role in the US drone war was exposed in 2013, causing public outrage in Germany, but US and German politicians have tried to downplay the base's significance.
Ramstein is home to the US Air Forces in Europe — Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). More than 16,000 US servicemen, civilians and contractors are assigned to the base. The base is part of the largest US military community overseas.