US military uses laser to down three Mexican cartel drones near border - CNN

The U.S. military successfully used a high-energy laser to shoot down three drones operated by Mexican drug cartels near the Texas border. The operation was conducted to mitigate security threats to personnel and border infrastructure.
Why it matters
The use of advanced laser weaponry against non-state actors marks a significant escalation in border security technology and tactics.
The US military used a laser in southern Texas’ Rio Grande Valley to shoot down three Mexican drug cartel drones this week near the US-Mexico border, US officials said on Thursday. The North American Aerospace Defense Command and US Northern Command said in a statement that the operation took place late Tuesday and early Wednesday and used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser. The military did not give the precise location of the strikes nor make clear whether it took place over US or Mexican territory. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has said any unilateral US action on Mexican soil would be a grave breach of her country’s sovereignty. The military said the drones posed “a physical threat” to US military and US Customs and Border Protection personnel.
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