Israel Lasers Intercept ‘Dozens' of Drones in Major Leap
Two laser air defense systems have intercepted "dozens and dozens" of threats, most of which were unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) launched by Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah from Lebanon, retired Brigadier General Daniel Gold, the head of defense research and development for the Israeli Defense Ministry, told Newsweek.
Israel first used a laser system in the early days of the war, Gold said. Israel launched a full-scale war on Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza following the organization's unprecedented October 7 attacks in 2023, and battled Hamas-aligned Hezbollah over Israel's northern border until a fragile ceasefire ended full-scale hostilities in November 2024.
Israel is one of several countries developing high-powered lasers to take out threats in the sky, most suited to intercepting cheap drones that would be incredibly expensive to shoot down with interceptor missiles.
While costing almost nothing to fire, the setup costs for these laser systems are huge. But interceptor missiles for Israel's vaunted Iron Dome short-range air defense system cost tens of thousands of dollars each, racking up an eye-watering bill when defending against high numbers of targets.
Analysts say lasers, a type of directed energy weapon, can be very useful as part of a larger web of air defenses, able to knock out smaller, slower targets but vulnerable to bad weather conditions.
The U.S. military said in 2024 the Army had used lasers to intercept drones in the Middle East, but did not provide further details. The U.S. military has tested directed energy weapons in the Middle East, the commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), General Michael Erik Kurilla, separately told lawmakers back in March 2024.
The Israeli Defense Ministry said the government, military and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems—Israel's state-owned defense giant—had accelerated the development of "revolutionary" systems and achieved "outstanding" results.
It is a "major milestone," Gold said.
Rafael's chairman, Yuval Steinitz, said Israel was the "first country in the world to transform high-power laser technology into a fully operational system—and to execute actual combat interceptions."
Rafael is also building the Iron Beam laser system, expected to come into service in the latter half of the year. "This system will fundamentally change the defense equation by enabling fast, precise, cost-effective interceptions, unmatched by any existing system," said Rafael chief executive, Yoav Tourgeman.
The two deployed laser systems are lower-powered, more mobile and slightly less costly than the Iron Beam, Gold said.
The Israeli government published footage it said showed the laser systems in action during the war. One clip looks to show at least one fixed-wing drone falling from the air after one of the wings is damaged by a laser.
The footage is "entirely plausible," said David Hambling, a U.K.-based weapons and technology expert.
"Drones are great targets for lasers because they are much smaller and more fragile than crewed aircraft and generally fly at slow speed without evading," he told Newsweek. "This make sit possible to focus a laser on one for long enough to burn through the skin and cause real damage, which is exactly what the video appears to show."
But with drone technology evolving at a rapid pace, they could end up fitted with countermeasures to make it much harder for lasers to intercept these targets, Hambling suggested.
The U.K. military said in April that British soldiers had used an "invisible radio-wave weapon" to knock out swarms of drones for the first time. Radio waves can be used as another type of directed energy weapon.
The U.K. is also developing a laser-directed energy weapon dubbed DragonFire.
Related Articles
Iran May Hold the Key to Trump's Nuclear RevolutionUS and Iran Nuclear Deal Could Be Sealed at Next Meeting: ReportViral Video Shows Gazans Cheering USA. But Is It Real?Trump Says Iran Strike Would Be 'Inappropriate' for Israel Amid Talks
2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
Europeans and Iran meet in Istanbul as the return of sanctions looms over nuclear deadlock
The return of sanctions, known as a 'snapback' mechanism, 'remains on the table,' according to a European diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the talks. 'A possible delay in triggering snapback has been floated to the Iranians on the condition that there is credible diplomatic engagement by Iran, that they resume full cooperation with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency), and that they address concerns about their highly-enriched uranium stockpile,' the diplomat said. European leaders have said sanctions will resume by the end of August if there is no progress on containing Iran's nuclear program. Advertisement Tehran, meanwhile, has said the U.S., which withdrew from the 2015 deal during President Donald Trump 's first term, needs to rebuild faith in its role in negotiations. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Iran's engagement was dependent on 'several key principles' that included 'rebuilding Iran's trust – as Iran has absolutely no trust in the United States.' In a social media post Thursday, he also said the talks shouldn't be used 'as a platform for hidden agendas such as military action.' Gharibabadi insisted that Iran's right to enrich uranium 'in line with its legitimate needs' be respected and sanctions removed. Advertisement Iran has repeatedly threatened to leave the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which commits it to refrain from developing nuclear weapons, if sanctions return. Friday's talks were being held at the deputy ministerial level, with Iran sending Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-e Ravanchi. A similar meeting was held in Istanbul in May. The identity of the E3 representatives were not immediately clear but the European Union's deputy foreign policy commissioner was thought to be attending. The U.K., France and Germany were signatories to the 2015 deal, alongside the U.S., Russia and China. When the U.S. withdrew in 2018, Trump insisted the agreement wasn't tough enough. Under the original deal, neither Russia nor China can veto reimposed sanctions. Since the Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran, which saw American B-52 bombers hit three nuclear sites, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has accused the E3 of hypocrisy, saying they failed to uphold their obligations while supporting Israel's attacks. Against the backdrop of the conflict, which saw Iran respond with missile attacks on Israel and a strike on a U.S. base in Qatar, the road ahead remains uncertain. While European officials have said they want to avoid further conflict and are open to a negotiated solution, they have warned that time is running out. Tehran maintains it is open to diplomacy, though it recently suspended cooperation with the IAEA. A central concern for Western powers was highlighted when the IAEA reported in May that Iran's stockpile of uranium enriched to 60% – just below weapons-grade level – had grown to over 400 kilograms (882 pounds). Advertisement In an interview with Al Jazeera that aired Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran is prepared for another war and reiterated that its nuclear program will continue within the framework of international law while adding the country had no intention of pursuing nuclear weapons. A spokesman for Iran's Atomic Energy Organization said Thursday the country's nuclear industry would 'grow back and thrive again' after the recent attacks by Israel and the U.S. Vahdat reported from Tehran, Iran. Associated Press writer Stephanie Lichtenstein in Vienna contributed to this report.
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
Gaza Talks Stall as Israel, US Pull Negotiators
00:00 Earlier this week, there was some optimism that maybe we'd get a breakthrough on these ceasefire discussions. But there was no break for it. And in fact, it seems as though the talks once again have collapsed. So tell us the latest and why we think these these negotiations were not successful Yes, I think this definitely is a setback for these talks. There was a lot of optimism that if we weren't going to get a ceasefire announced this week, then then at least there would be a big breakthrough. And Donald Trump's main U.S. main envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, traveled to Europe. And the expectation or the hope, at least among many people, was that he would travel to Qatar, where the key the key negotiators for Israel and Hamas are. And if he did, that would be a sign that a ceasefire was imminent. But he hasn't gone there. And then last night, Israel said it was recalling its negotiators in the U.S. with doing the same. It's a little bit unclear, but obviously what what happened was that Israel studied Hamas's latest response, which came on Wednesday, and it wasn't satisfied. And some Israeli media are saying that Hamas upped its demands for the number of Palestinians that must be released from Israeli jails as part of the 60 day truce that they're negotiating. So that could have been a stumbling block. We did have one person involved in the mediation tell us that this doesn't mean the talks have collapsed completely. And we also had an Israeli official expressing some optimism that they could still go on. But clearly, this this you know, this is yet another instance of these of these talks stalling. Yeah, a setback Yesterday, the French President Macron made a big statement saying that France will move to recognize Palestinian statehood as soon as September over in the UK. The Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, is also under pressure to do the same. Why? Why now? What is it with this timing in particular? It's it's a good question. I think the bigger picture is that there's growing anger among world powers, especially in Western Europe. Well, in places like Western Europe and the Arab world over the continuation of the of the war in Gaza and the worsening humanitarian situation there, we had roughly 25 to 30 countries, including the UK and France and Japan and Norway and Australia, putting out a joint statement on on Monday in which they called for Israel to end the war immediately. And they said that the situation regarding supplies of food and and medicine to Gazans was and was horrific. And that's starvation was was growing. So that's the bigger picture. I think there's a lot of frustration in the rest of the world. Israel's relations with a lot of European countries have been severely damaged in recent months because because of all this and when it comes to Emmanuel Macron, he has been sort of among, let's say, key world powers, sort of at the forefront of saying he wants to recognize a Palestinian state and he's putting pressure on Keir Starmer, the UK prime minister, to do the same for Israel in the U.S. This is that very kind of frustrated by this move and they say it will threaten Israel's security.
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Wall street investors react to Trump-Powell squabble
'This is a soap opera': 'Einstein' & 'Ives' react to Trump-Powell squabble CNN's Erin Burnett talks with Dan Ives and Peter Tuchman about the awkward moment between President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell during their tour of the Fed's $2.5 billion renovation project. 02:12 - Source: CNN Automated CNN Shorts 11 videos 'This is a soap opera': 'Einstein' & 'Ives' react to Trump-Powell squabble CNN's Erin Burnett talks with Dan Ives and Peter Tuchman about the awkward moment between President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell during their tour of the Fed's $2.5 billion renovation project. 02:12 - Source: CNN Macron says France will recognize a Palestinian state French President Emmanuel Macron said France will recognize a Palestinian state in an announcement to the United Nations General Assembly in September. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned the decision saying it 'rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became.' 00:48 - Source: CNN How Hulk Hogan's historic lawsuit changed the face of media CNN's Chief Media Analyst Brian Stelter breaks down how a lawsuit brought by Hulk Hogan against the blog Gawker forever changed the media industry. The case, which was filed after Gawker published Hogan's sex tape, set the stage for a slew of A-list celebrities filing blockbuster lawsuits against media companies. 02:04 - Source: CNN Before and after photos show Trump's redesign of Rose Garden Before and after photos show the dramatic changes the Trump administration is making to the White House Rose Garden, including paving over the lawn. The garden has undergone several renovations since its creation by First Lady Ellen Wilson in 1913. 00:59 - Source: CNN Scientist unexpectedly finds shark devouring another shark Wildlife biologist Forrest Galante came across a rare instance of female spotted wobbegong devouring a young male shark in New South Wales, Australia. Discovery and CNN share a corporate parent, Warner Bros. Discovery. Catch Shark Week on Discovery all week long. 01:22 - Source: CNN All five acquitted in Hockey Canada sexual assault trial Within minutes of starting to read her verdict, the words of Justice Maria Carroccia resonated across Canada as she bluntly assessed that, 'I do not find the evidence of E.M. to be either credible or reliable.' Five professional hockey players -- Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, Carter Hart, Dillon Dube and Alex Formenton -- were all acquitted on Thursday, according to the Associated Press, on charges of sexual assault in connection with a June 2018 incident at a hotel room in London, Ontario, when they were members of the country's World Juniors hockey team. 01:19 - Source: CNN Palestinian Authority Prime Minister slams Israel for hunger crisis In an exclusive interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa reacts to Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer's assertion that 'there is no famine caused by Israel.' The government has denied responsibility and accuses Hamas of 'engineering' food shortages. 01:21 - Source: CNN Controversy over the Fed's renovation, explained The White House has seized on the Federal Reserve's $2.5 billion construction project as a potential legal opening to oust Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The renovation has become a new line of attack from President Trump, who has railed against Powell for not lowering interest rates enough. 02:18 - Source: CNN Trump and Powell clash over renovation costs at Federal Reserve President Donald Trump had an awkward exchange with Fed Chair Jerome Powell over the price of the Federal Reserve's $2.5 billion renovation. 00:49 - Source: CNN Detainees released from mega-prison CECOT An estimated 252 Venezuelans who had been imprisoned at the CECOT prison in March were released and returned to their home country in exchange for 10 US nationals and dozens of Venezuelan political prisoners, US officials said. Detainees celebrated their arrival home but also spoke about the conditions they faced - causing the Venezuelan government to open a formal investigation into several Salvadoran officials, including President Nayib Bukele, over the alleged abuse of Venezuelan migrants deported from the US. 01:42 - Source: CNN Anne Burrell's death ruled a suicide Anne Burrell, who was best known as one of the Food Network's most popular stars, has died. Her death has been ruled a suicide. Burrell appeared on 'Worst Cooks in America,' 'Iron Chef America,' 'Chef Wanted with Anne Burrell' and 'The Best Thing I Ever Ate,' among many others. 00:24 - Source: CNN
