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4h ago

Pentagon Lets DHS Test 'Heat Ray' for Possible Use at Southern Border

The seven-month loan gives DHS operational control and raises fresh questions about legality, safety and cross‑border effects.

An Active Denial System from the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate is staged before conducting a demonstration in Wellton, Arizona, in April 2017.
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA - OCTOBER 10: The Pentagon is seen from a flight taking off from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on October 10, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Combat Logistics Battalion 7 performed a non-lethal weapons training exercise March 21 in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Defense’s Non-Lethal Weapons Program at the Combat Center’s Range 800. The Active Denial System 2, an advanced non-lethal direct-fire support system that projects a man-sized beam of heat-emitting millimeter waves. It can effectively engage targets up to 1,000 meters. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Alejandro)
An Active Denial System from the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate is staged before conducting a counter personnel demo during Weapons and Tactics Instructor course (WTI) 2-17 at Site 50, Wellton, Ariz., April 4, 2017. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Andrew M. Huff)

Overview

  • The Pentagon approved a temporary seven-month loan of one Active Denial System to the Department of Homeland Security beginning in September 2026 and forbade Defense personnel from operating the device, placing use and tactics under DHS authority.
  • The Active Denial System is a directed‑energy device that fires millimeter‑wave beams up to about half a mile to heat the outer layer of skin, producing an intense burning or tingling sensation that military officials say lasts roughly 10 to 15 minutes.
  • Officials have not disclosed where or how DHS will test the unit and the system has not been deployed operationally at the border, leaving questions about specific tactics, locations and safety protocols unanswered.
  • Current and former officials warn of legal and use‑of‑force problems, potential violations of Mexican sovereignty if the beam is aimed at people off U.S. soil, and safety risks such as driving people into dangerous terrain or water.
  • DHS may seek extensions after the initial loan and the move is likely to prompt oversight reviews, legal challenges and renewed public debate over whether the technology should be used in domestic border operations.