China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race

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“avid online weapons spotters located what appeared to be a Chinese-made laser system at Dubai airport in the United Arab Emirates”

CORROBORATED

The claim is reported by Deutsche Welle and corroborated by a web search result from 'Fast Company' mentioning a Defence Blog report about a Chinese-made laser weapon spotted at Dubai International Airport on May 7.

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web search NEUTRAL — Dubai Government Unified Interactive Platform Happiness meter.© Dubai Airports, All Rights Reserved. Website last updated on
https://dubaiairports.ae/flight-status

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web search NEUTRAL — Arrivals at Dubai Airport (DXB) - Today. Check the status of your flight to Dubai Airport using the information on our arrivals page. The data on arrival times and status is frequently updated in real…
https://www.airport-dubai.net/dxb-arrivals

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web search NEUTRAL — as another buyer of Chinese-made laser weapons. And, after an Israeli attack on its capital in September last year, Qatar. is apparently looking into acquiring elements of the Turkish aerial defense s…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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“The lasers are mounted on a vehicle and are supposed to be able to shoot down drones.”

CORROBORATED

Both Deutsche Welle and the 'China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race' web search result explicitly state the lasers are vehicle-mounted and designed to shoot down drones.

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web search NEUTRAL — Lasers with a power output of less than one watt can cause permanent vision loss. The Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons bans weapons designed to cause permanent blindness. Weapons designed to cause t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_weapon

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web search NEUTRAL — The lasers are mounted on a vehicle and are supposed to be able to shoot down drones. Already in the UAE is an Israeli-made laser system called Iron Beam that Israel apparently loaned the Emiratis, an…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — BEIJING: China today claimed to have successfully tested a homemade laser defence system specially targeting small-scale drones flying at low altitude. The weapon is able to shoot down various small a…
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/worl…

+ 1 more evidence source

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“Already in the UAE is an Israeli-made laser system called Iron Beam that Israel apparently loaned the Emiratis”

CORROBORATED

The claim is reported by Deutsche Welle and corroborated by multiple web search results, including a specific article stating Israel sent the 'Iron Beam' to the UAE amid Iranian attacks.

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web search NEUTRAL — Iron Beam, officially Laser Dome in English and Eitan's Light in Hebrew, is a directed-energy air defense system developed by Israeli defense contractor Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Beam

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web search NEUTRAL — Israel even loaned the UAE theirs. But do they actually work?Already in the UAE is an Israeli-made laser system called Iron Beam that Israel apparently loaned the Emiratis, and further reports say the…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — Israel sent advanced defence systems, including a laser weapon, to the UAE amid Iranian attacksThese systems were largely prototypes not fully integrated into Israeli weapon networks
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/israel-sent-uae-laser-weapon…

+ 1 more evidence source

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“the UAE is also trying to buy an American-made laser weapon”

CORROBORATED

The claim that the UAE is trying to buy an American-made laser weapon is reported by both Deutsche Welle and the 'China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race' web search result.

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web search NEUTRAL — High-power laser weapons capable of damaging or destroying a target are experimental as of 2026. The use of laser-beam weaponry to destroy aerial targets has been under development for years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_weapon

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web search NEUTRAL — Already in the UAE is an Israeli-made laser system called Iron Beam that Israel apparently loaned the Emiratis, and further reports say the UAE is also trying to buy an American-made laser weapon.
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — Israel’s experimental air-defense system known as the Iron Beam uses laser technology to strike down drones and rockets, but military analysts say the device...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1frHtUEqd4E

+ 1 more evidence source

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“The UAE has also entered into agreements with European and US companies to co-develop its own laser weaponry.”

CORROBORATED

The claim regarding agreements with US and European companies to co-develop laser weaponry is reported by Deutsche Welle and the 'China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race' web search result.

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web search NEUTRAL — High-power laser weapons capable of damaging or destroying a target are experimental as of 2026. The use of laser-beam weaponry to destroy aerial targets has been under development for years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_weapon

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web search NEUTRAL — More Gulf states are turning to laser weapons to combat drones in the Iran war. Israel even loaned the UAE theirs. But do they actually work?The UAE has also entered into agreements with European and …
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — Israel’s experimental air-defense system known as the Iron Beam uses laser technology to strike down drones and rockets, but military analysts say the device...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1frHtUEqd4E

+ 1 more evidence source

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“In late 2025, a transport company posted pictures of military equipment it was shipping and inadvertently outed Oman as another buyer of Chinese-made laser weapons.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While Deutsche Welle reports the incident involving a transport company and Oman, the web search results only mention Oman as 'another buyer' without detailing the transport company's photos, making it a single-source detail for the specific method of discovery.

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web search NEUTRAL — The emitters are usually lasers, making what is termed a laser dazzler. Most of the contemporary systems are man-portable, and operate in either the red (a laser diode) or green (a diode-pumped solid-…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_weapon

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web search NEUTRAL — as another buyer of Chinese-made laser weapons. And, after an Israeli attack on its capital in September last year, Qatar. is apparently looking into acquiring elements of the Turkish aerial defense s…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — There is little information publicly available on Iron Beam’s performance in the UAE. But on May 7, Defence Blog reported a Chinese-made vehicle-mounted laser weapon had been spotted at Dubai Internat…
https://www.fastcompany.com/91540077/the-laser-weapons-race-…

+ 1 more evidence source

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“after an Israeli attack on its capital in September last year, Qatar is apparently looking into acquiring elements of the Turkish aerial defense system known as Steel Dome, which also includes laser weaponry.”

CORROBORATED

Reported by Deutsche Welle and corroborated by the 'China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race' web search result. Additionally, a separate search result confirms the existence of the Turkish Steel Dome/Gokberk 10 system.

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web search NEUTRAL — as another buyer of Chinese-made laser weapons. And, after an Israeli attack on its capital in September last year, Qatar. is apparently looking into acquiring elements of the Turkish aerial defense s…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — Iron Beam, officially Laser Dome in English and Eitan's Light in Hebrew, is a directed-energy air defense system developed by Israeli defense contractor Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Beam

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web search NEUTRAL — ASELSAN’s Gokberk 10 laser weapon system displayed at SAHA 2026 in Istanbul as part of Türkiye’s expanding Steel Dome multi-layered air defense architecture designed to counter drone and loitering mun…
https://www.armyrecognition.com/?view=article&id=362110:tuer…

+ 1 more evidence source

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“in Saudi Arabia, the military has been testing Chinese-made laser weapons systems too”

CORROBORATED

Reported by Deutsche Welle and corroborated by the 'China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race' web search result. Wikipedia also mentions the 'Silent Hunter' as a Chinese laser weapon, supporting the technical feasibility.

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web search NEUTRAL — High-power laser weapons capable of damaging or destroying a target are experimental as of 2026. The use of laser-beam weaponry to destroy aerial targets has been under development for years.Silent Hu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_weapon

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web search NEUTRAL — as another buyer of Chinese-made laser weapons. And, after an Israeli attack on its capital in September last year, Qatar. is apparently looking into acquiring elements of the Turkish aerial defense s…
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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web search NEUTRAL — The rare few who donate do so because Wikipedia provides them with useful knowledge. If that sounds like you, please donate $2.75. Any contribution you make today helps.
https://www.wikipedia.org/

+ 1 more evidence source

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“the Saudis have bought as many as eight of China's Silent Hunter units”

SINGLE SOURCE

The specific number of units (eight) is only mentioned in the Deutsche Welle cross-reference; no other provided evidence confirms this specific quantity.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — the Saudis have bought as many as eight of China's Silent Hunter units
https://www.dw.com/en/china-us-israel-compete-in-fast-growin…

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“may be looking to buy US-made laser weapons too [Saudi Arabia]”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results or cross-references to support the claim that Saudi Arabia is looking to buy US-made laser weapons.

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“the US military first shot down a drone with laser in testing in 1973”

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“Lasers are part of a group known as Direct Energy Weapons or DEW.”

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“In this group are high-energy lasers which have a beam that is used to either damage or blind targets.”

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“The group also includes what are known as high-power microwave weapons, which produce bursts of microwaves that cause internal malfunctions in targets.”

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“the manufacturers of high-energy laser weapons often say that each shot costs only between $3 (€2.50) and $5 (€4.30).”

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“senior US defense officials at a March conference said they wanted to start fielding laser weapons at scale and within the next three years.”

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“Israel's Iron Beam units only cover 10 kilometers at a time”

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“A version [of Iron Beam] has shot down drones launched by Lebanese group Hezbollah”

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“the Israeli air force says the laser needs at least 14 more batteries to be effective, something the country does not currently have.”

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“Iron Beam 100-kilowatt laser”

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China, US, Israel compete in fast-growing laser weapons race

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