Published • loading... • Updated
U.S. Military Uses Laser to Shoot Down 3 Cartel Drones at Southern Border, Pentagon Says
Officials said the drones posed a physical threat to U.S. military and Border Patrol personnel, prompting the first known laser shootdown in the border region.
- On Tuesday and Wednesday, the U.S. military used an 'Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser' to shoot down three drones along the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas' Rio Grande Valley, officials said Thursday.
- The Joint Task Force, comprising about 8,000 U.S. service members, was formed last year to support President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown and conducted the operation.
- USNORTHCOM officials determined the drones were 'hostile' because they posed 'a physical threat to U.S. military personnel' and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency said.
- Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the Joint Task Force, stated cartels 'are increasingly employing unmanned aircraft systems to facilitate illicit human-smuggling and actively spy on our personnel and law enforcement partners.'
- While cartels primarily use drones for surveillance and smuggling, Austin Doctor of the University of Nebraska at Omaha noted weaponized drone attacks remain rare inside the United States.
Insights by Ground AI
23 Articles
23 Articles
US laser weapons were first used against Mexican drug cartels that posed a "physical threat" to U.S. military and border guards.
·Kyiv, Ukraine
Read Full Article
The U.S. military has shot down three drones near the Mexican border with a high-energy laser, which is said to have posed a threat to soldiers and border officials.
·Berlin, Germany
Read Full Article
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Hyun Young-bok = The U.S. military shot down three drones belonging to a Mexican drug cartel using laser weapons in the U.S.-Mexico border region.
·Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
Read Full Article
Coverage Details
Total News Sources23
Leaning Left4Leaning Right5Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution36% Center, 36% Right
Bias Distribution
- 36% of the sources are Center, 36% of the sources lean Right
36% Right
L 28%
C 36%
R 36%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
