Watch Israel Score the First Known Combat Laser Kill Ever Recorded on Video
The Israeli military says it used laser weapons to destroy Hezbollah drones – and it has the footage to prove it.
The Israeli military has released what appears to be the first known footage of a high-energy laser weapon system destroying a drone in actual combat, a milestone moment for the real-world deployment of directed energy systems on the battlefield.
On May 28, the Israeli Defense Forces and Israeli defense contractor Rafeal published a 30-second clip showing several fixed-wing drones – launched by Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon during Israel’s October 2024 invasion – bursting into flames midair. The undated footage, filmed through a digital crosshair likely tied to a laser weapon, doesn’t show the beam itself, but the effects are unmistakable. Wings clipped, the drones spiral out of control and slam into the earth.
Watch the Israeli military use laser weapons to destroy hostile drones:
In a statement, Israel’s Ministry of Defense said the laser weapons used in the engagements were prototypes operated by the Aerial Defense Array, the Israeli Air Force unit responsible for air defense systems like the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. The MoD also described the prototypes as “complementary” to the 100 kilowatt Iron Beam, Israel’s larger high-energy laser system slated for deployment later this year.
Interestingly, it looks like there are two distinct prototypes showcased in the separate footage that accompanied the MoD’s statement: what appears to be a stationary, containerized variant of the Lite Beam, a 10 kw high-energy laser weapon system designed to intercept drones at ranges up to 3 kilometers from atop light and armored tactical vehicles; and what looks like an Iron Beam-M, a 50 kw mobile variant of Rafael’s well-known Iron Beam.
It’s unclear which specific system achieved the first kill in the engagement documented in the video above.
It’s worth noting that Rafael originally unveiled the Lite Beam at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference in Washington, D.C. in early October 2024, just days after Israel began its Lebanon operation in response to Hezbollah’s cross-border drone attacks. This means that the system potentially went from trade show debut to combat debut in less than two months.
“Throughout the current war, the IAF, including its Aerial Defense Array soldiers, studied and deployed the laser systems in the field, achieving outstanding interception rates that saved civilian lives and protected national assets,” the MoD said.
This may not be the first-ever combat laser kill in the history of warfare — the United States may hold that honor if the US Army ever gets around to officially confirming it — but Israel’s Lite Beam footage represents the first time the world has ever seen a directed energy weapon in action on the battlefield before. In a domain long defined by PowerPoint slides and defense contractor renderings, this is a historic moment for military lasers: a real-world glimpse of an invisible weapon burning things out of the sky.
Still, big questions remain surrounding these kills. Was this footage cherry-picked from hundreds of shots? What were the weather and range conditions? D? And perhaps most importantly: how repeatable is this performance under different battlefield conditions, especially during coordinated saturation attacks? Can they maintain fire against a complex, multi-drone swarm? Can they keep shooting after the first five kills, or do they need to cool down?
Regardless of the answers, this footage is likely to accelerate interest in directed energy weapons worldwide. For years, militaries have flirted with the promise of high-energy lasers as a solution to the rising drone threat, capable of rapidly engaging multiple targets with deadly precision at a fraction of the cost of a pricey missile or interceptor. A confirmed, visually documented laser kill in combat, even under ideal conditions, will almost certainly serve as a proof point for defense ministries and contractors eager to justify new funding lines or push stalled R&D programs. From NATO to the Indo-Pacific, Israel’s short clip may do more to advance the case for laser weapons than any white paper, briefing, or demonstration ever could.
Countries already leading the charge on high-energy lasers — like the US, China, Russia, the UK, India, and Ukraine — are likely to treat this video as a tipping point for the technology. Then again, making a drone pop in clean air is one thing, but doing it in fog, smoke, rain, or the thermal haze of a full-scale conflict is another. Lasers degrade fast in bad conditions, and maintaining a tight beam on a maneuvering target is still an engineering challenge. If laser weapons are to earn a permanent place on the battlefield, they’ll have to do more than dazzle — they’ll have to endure.
Despite the historic nature of the Israeli military’s laser kills, it’s still unclear how the future of military laser weapons might unfold across fighting forces around the world. But one thing is clear: the Laser Wars have officially arrived.
