U.S. military uses laser to shoot down 3 cartel drones at southern border, Pentagon says

Read the original at CBS News ↗
Cite

Tanyos, F. (2026, August 28). U.S. military uses laser to shoot down 3 cartel drones at southern border, Pentagon says. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-military-laser-shoots-down-cartel-drones-southern-border-pentagon/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

CBS News · collected 2026-08-28 · by Faris Tanyos

Quick Summary

The US military used a laser system to shoot down three drones operated by drug cartels along the US-Mexico border on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. The drones were deemed "hostile" because they posed a physical threat to US military personnel and Customs and Border Protection. According to Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the southern border's Joint Task Force, these actions are part of an effort to counter cartel use of unmanned aircraft systems for surveillance and smuggling activities. No further details on the operation were provided due to operational security reasons.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-08-28, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

The US military used a laser system to shoot down three drones operated by drug cartels along the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. The *Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser system* was employed by the Joint Task Force, a unit of USNORTHCOM, to take out the unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). According to US Northern Command, the drones were considered "hostile" because they were supporting activities that posed a physical threat to US military personnel. The operation was carried out in coordination with partners along the border, but specific details are being withheld for operational security reasons. This incident marks one of the first times the US has used a laser system to shoot down hostile drones. The use of such technology highlights the growing concern over cartels' increasing reliance on drones near the border, primarily for surveillance and other illicit activities.

Written for “U S Border Security Efforts” on 2026-10-16, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 U S Border Security Efforts
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 14% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
South China Morning Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 11% hedged 1 of 9 📰 publisher trust 64
“Different locations and participants: Philippines vs. U.S.-Mexico border, with different entities involved (Manila and the Department of National Defence vs. Pentagon and U.S. Northern Command)”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
14
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
14%
2 of 14 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
CBS News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-08-28 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

CBS News · 3021 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Faris Tanyos
10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Following the move, the five networks that make up the TV press pool jointly announced that they would be suspending their coverage in solidarity.
🔮 - The storm is forecast to bring powerful winds, flash flooding and storm surges to a large swath of the Southeast through the weekend.
🔮 Since then, Van Houten has said he will reopen the investigation, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order assigning New York Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor into the incident.
🔮 The CEO of the world's largest chipmaker told CBS News that tech companies should push forward with the development of artificial intelligence despite recent warnings from worried industry leaders that there may be a need to pull back due to unease about where the technology could be headed.
🔮 Outstanding comedy series - "Widow's Bay" (Apple TV) — Winner - "Abbott Elementary" (ABC) - "The Bear" (FX) - "Hacks" (HBO Max) - "Margo's Got Money Troubles" (Apple TV) - "Nobody Wants This" (Netflix) - "Only Murders in the Building" (Hulu) - "Shrinking" (Apple TV) Outstanding movie - "Remarkably Bright Creatures" (Netflix) — Winner - "Miss You, Love You" (Netflix) - "People We Meet on Vacation" (Netflix) - "Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan: Ghost War" (Amazon Prime Video) - "Heads of State" (Amazon Prime Video) Outstanding drama series - "The Pitt" (HBO Max) — Winner - "The Diplomat" (Netflix) - "Pluribus" (Apple TV) - "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" (HBO Max) - "The Gilded Age" (HBO Max) - "Paradise" (Hulu) - "Your Friends and Neighbors" (Apple TV) - "Slow Horses" (Apple TV) Outstanding limited or anthology series - "DTF St. Louis" (HBO Max) — Winner - "All Her Fault" (Peacock) - "The Beast in Me" (Netflix) - "Beef" (Netflix) - "Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette" (FX/Hulu) Outstanding writing for a drama series - "Pluribus," Vince Gilligan ("We is Us") — Winner - "The Pitt," Kirsten Pierre-Geyfman and R. Scott Gemmill ("1:00 P.M.") - "The Diplomat," Peter Ackerman and Debora Cahn ("Amagansett") - "The Pitt," Valerie Chu ("12:00 P.M.") - "Slow Horses," Will Smith ("Scars") - "Task," Brad Ingelsby ("A Still Small Voice") Outstanding directing for a comedy series - "Widow's Bay," Hiro Murai ("Welcome To Widow's Bay!") — Winner - "Abbott Elementary," Randall Einhorn ("Ballgame") - "The Bear," Christopher Storer ("Bears") - "The Chair Company," Andrew DeYoung ("Life Goes By Too F**king Fast, It Really Does.") - "Hacks," Lucia Aniello ("Hacks [Finale]") - "The Ms. Pat Show," Mary Lou Belli ("Give It Arrest") Outstanding variety series - "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" (CBS) — Winner - "The Daily Show" (Comedy Central) - "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" (ABC) - "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" (HBO Max) - "Saturday Night Live" (NBC) Outstanding directing for a drama series - "Slow Horses," Saul Metzstein ("Scars") — Winner - "The Gilded Age," Salli Richardson Whitfield ("My Mind Is Made Up") - "The Pitt," Noah Wyle ("12:00 P.M.") - "Paradise," Hanelle M. Culpepper ("Exodus") - "Pluribus," Vince Gilligan ("We is Us") - "Task," Salli Richardson Whitfield ("Out Beyond Ideas Of Wrongdoing And Rightdoing, There Is A River.") Outstanding writing for a comedy series - "Widow's Bay," Katie Dippold ("Welcome To Widow's Bay!") — Winner - "Abbott Elementary," Quinta Brunson ("Team Building") - "The Chair Company," Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin ("Life Goes By Too F**king Fast, It Really Does.") - "The Comeback," Michael Patrick King and Lisa Kudrow ("Valerie Does It All") - "Hacks," Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky ("Hacks [Finale]") - "Jury Duty Presents Company Retreat," Anthony King ("Mergers And Acquisitions") Outstanding lead actor in a comedy series - Matthew Rhys, "Widow's Bay" — Winner - Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, "Wonder Man" - Steve Carell, "Rooster" - Jason Segel, "Shrinking" - Martin Short, "Only Murders in the Building" Outstanding lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie - Sally Field, "Remarkably Bright Creatures" — Winner - Claire Danes, "The Beast in Me" - Carey Mulligan, "Beef" - Sarah Pidgeon, "Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette" - Sarah Snook, "All Her Fault" Outstanding supporting actor in a drama series - Tom Pelphrey, "Task" — Winner - Patrick Ball, "The Pitt" - Billy Crudup, "The Morning Show" - Shawn Hatosy, "The Pitt" - Gerran Howell, "The Pitt" - Jack Lowden, "Slow Horses" - Carlos-Manuel Vesga, "Pluribus" Outstanding lead actor in a drama series - Noah Wyle, "The Pitt" — Winner - Sterling K. Brown, "Paradise" - Gary Oldman, "Slow Horses" - Mark Ruffalo, "Task" - Rufus Sewell, "The Diplomat" Outstanding reality competition program - "The Traitors" (Peacock) — Winner - "Dancing with the Stars" (ABC) - "RuPaul's Drag Race" (MTV) - "Survivor" (CBS) - "Top Chef" (Bravo) Outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series - Stephen Root, "Widow's Bay" — Winner - Colman Domingo, "The Four Seasons" - Paul W. Downs, "Hacks" - Harrison Ford, "Shrinking" - Nick Offerman, "Margo's Got Money Troubles" - Michael Urie, "Shrinking" - Tyler James Williams, "Abbott Elementary" Outstanding lead actress in a drama series - Rhea Seehorn, "Pluribus" — Winner - Carrie Coon, "The Gilded Age" - Chase Infiniti, "The Testaments" - Keri Russell, "The Diplomat" - Zendaya, "Euphoria" Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series - Allison Janney, "The Diplomat" — Winner - Taylor Dearden, "The Pitt" - Fiona Dourif, "The Pitt" - Katherine LaNasa, "The Pitt" - Sepideh Moafi, "The Pitt" - Julianne Nicholson, "Paradise" - Karolina Wydra, "Pluribus" Outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie - Matthew Rhys, "The Beast in Me" — Winner - Riz Ahmed, "Bait" - Jason Bateman, "Black Rabbit" - Charlie Hunnam, "Monster: The Ed Gein Story" - Oscar Isaac, "Beef" Outstanding lead actress in a comedy series - Jean Smart, "Hacks" — Winner - Quinta Brunson, "Abbott Elementary" - Ayo Edebiri, "The Bear" - Elle Fanning, "Margo's Got Money Troubles" - Lisa Kudrow, "The Comeback" Outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series - Kate O'Flynn, "Widow's Bay" — Winner - Dale Dickey, "Widow's Bay" - Hannah Einbinder, "Hacks" - Janelle James, "Abbott Elementary" - Michelle Pfeiffer, "Margo's Got Money Troubles" - Megan Stalter, "Hacks" - Jessica Williams, "Shrinking"
2026-09-15 · assertive framing · Who won Emmys for 2026? See the full winners list here.
🔮 "I don't think I fully just appreciated what it would actually be like when the progress was as fast as it was," Amodei said in an interview with senior business and technology correspondent Jo Ling Kent that will air on "CBS News Sunday Morning."
🔮 Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon said that artificial intelligence, while safe for people to use today, could one day threaten humanity as the technology grows more powerful.
🔮 "By integrating layered countermeasures alongside advanced directed-energy capabilities like this laser system, we have made it clear that we will not tolerate hostile surveillance."
🔮 The two pilots aboard the chopper, who were members of the state police's elite aviation unit, were injured but are expected to survive, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at the briefing.
🔮 Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks said Sunday the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, identifying him as 24-year-old Chad Williams.
Also by Faris Tanyos
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 10 articles by Faris Tanyos →

Topics

FAA Joint Task Force Pentagon U.S. USNORTHCOM

Subjects

U.S. GPE · 8× Joint Task Force ORG · 3× USNORTHCOM ORG · 3× FAA ORG · 2× Pentagon ORG · 2× Army ORG · 1× CBS News ORG · 1× Mexican NORP · 1× U.S. Northern Command ORG · 1× U.S.-Mexico GPE · 1×

Narrative

Austin Doctor, an associate professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and the director of strategic initiatives at the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center, that the cartels primarily use drones near the border for surveillance purposes "to support their other illegal criminal activities, including smuggling of narcotics, smuggling of persons, firearms, and other illicit goods."Doctor noted the cartels have not used weaponized drones inside the U.S., but they do use them inside Mexico to target rival cartels.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-28
🔮 "By integrating layered countermeasures alongside advanced directed-energy capabilities like this laser system, we have made it clear that we will not tolerate hostile surveillance."

Claims (14 extracted, 2 hedged)

The U.S. military this week used a laser to shoot down three drones along the U.S.-Mexico border that were allegedly operated by drug cartels, the Pentagon said Thursday. uncertain
Pentagon → use → cartels
The three unmanned aircraft systems were shot down late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning using an "Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser system," according to U.S. Northern Command, which is responsible for overseeing certain military defense operations in North America. uncertain
which → shoot → America
The drones were downed by the U.S. military's southern border Joint Task Force, a unit of USNORTHCOM, which did not specify exactly where the drones were shot down, or which cartels they were believed to belong to. asserted
they → down → cartels
No details on the operation were provided. asserted
details → provide → operation
Asked if the drones were shot down over U.S. or Mexican airspace, a USNORTHCOM spokesperson told CBS News that "the shots were taken in coordination with all partners operating along the border. asserted
shots → ask → border
Due to operational security reasons and ongoing counter cartel and counter drone operations, we do not have additional details to provide at this time." asserted
we → have → time
The drones were determined to be "hostile" because they were in "support of activities posing a physical threat to U.S. military personnel" and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, USNORTHCOM said. asserted
USNORTHCOM → determine → personnel
"Cartel networks are increasingly employing unmanned aircraft systems to facilitate illicit human-smuggling and actively spy on our personnel and law enforcement partners," Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the southern border's Joint Task Force, said in a statement. asserted
Taylor → employ → statement
"By integrating layered countermeasures alongside advanced directed-energy capabilities like this laser system, we have made it clear that we will not tolerate hostile surveillance." asserted
we → integrate → surveillance
In February, a U.S. military laser accidentally shot down a U.S. Customs and Border Protection drone in the Fort Hancock area in southwest Texas. asserted
laser → shoot → Texas
And earlier that same month, the Federal Aviation Administration commercial airspace around El Paso following an internal safety disagreement between the FAA and Pentagon over military drone tests that were being conducted near Fort Bliss said involved a high-energy laser system. asserted
that → follow → system
At the time, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that the FAA and Defense Department had "acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion" and that the "threat has been normalized." asserted
threat → say → incursion
Austin Doctor, an associate professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and the director of strategic initiatives at the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center, that the cartels primarily use drones near the border for surveillance purposes "to support their other illegal criminal activities, including smuggling of narcotics, smuggling of persons, firearms, and other illicit goods."Doctor noted the cartels have not used weaponized drones inside the U.S., but they do use them inside Mexico to target rival cartels. asserted
they → use → cartels
The southern border Joint Task Force, which has about 8,000 U.S. service members, was formed last year in support of President Trump's immigration crackdown. asserted
which → have → crackdown
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support