The U.S. military disabled Mexican cartel drones breached American airspace near El Paso, Texas, federal aviation officials announced Wednesday.

The airspace over El Paso's international airport was briefly closed Feb. 11 after the Pentagon disabled drones by Mexican cartels, official said.

Remotely controlled drones are being used as first responders to police emergencies and incidents by tracking suspects and gathering evidence. Cleveland Police said it was the first force in the north of England to use them operationally "to catch criminals and keep communities safe".

The sudden closure of airspace around El Paso, Texas, by the Federal Aviation Administration stemmed from the Pentagon’s plan to test a laser for shooting down Mexican cartel drones.

Flights were grounded overnight for "security reasons," but conflicting accounts have left travelers wondering what really triggered the shutdown.

Drones have given viewers an unprecedented look at the competition, so here's what you need to know about their role in the Olympics.

None of these drones ever go over the athletes or in front of them. This is one of the fundamentals. They always stay behind and they follow, and actually they don't need to because the shot. We want to have is from behind.

Pigeons have historically served as messengers for humans, but a Russian startup claims to take this to a new level—effectively “hacking” pigeon brains to turn them into biological drones. In a recent statement,