WASHINGTON, Sept 4 (Reuters) – The U.S. military has downed 11 cartel drones using lasers since deploying the technology along the U.S.-Mexican border last week, U.S. officials said on Friday.
U.S. Northern Command, in a statement, said the unmanned aerial systems “were assessed to be associated with illicit activity along the border” and were targeted with the Army Multipurpose High-Energy Laser system as part of a task-force operation.
More than 300 drones have been downed since the start of 2026 using both “kinetic and non-kinetic systems” in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. military said, adding that more than 100 drones were taken down in August.
The military did not say where exactly the laser strikes took place or whether they occurred over U.S. or Mexican territory. It also did not specify the manufacturer of the laser technology used.
Mexico’s secretary of defense told reporters on Friday that the two governments coordinate by sharing information and conducting mirror operations on both sides of the border, but did not confirm Mexican military participation in specific actions against cartel drones.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has said any unilateral U.S. action on Mexican soil would be a grave breach of her country’s sovereignty.
(Reporting by Mike Stone; additional reporting by Raul Cortes in Mexico City; writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Alex Richardson and David Gaffen)
