France is training eagles to destroy drones as terrorist groups ramp up the use of the small unmanned aerial vehicles in attacks, The Washington Post reported.
Terrorist groups started using armed drones in strikes earlier this year and the Islamic State in January formally announced the creation of a new "Unmanned Aircraft of the Mujahideen" unit, a fleet of customized drones equipped with bombs.
Just last week, ISIS used militant drones to attack U.S. special forces in the battle for Raqqa in Syria. In Mosul, the Islamic State used drones in swarms of three to five at a time, CBS News reported in February. The drones used there were able to drop hand grenades or artillery shells on targets.
French military officials started to grow concerned about a security threat in 2015 when drones flew over the presidential palace and a restricted military site. After seeing how Dutch police trained an eagle to pull a DJI Phantom drone out of the air, they went forward with their own experiment.
The birds are natural drone fighters. They have the ability to spot targets over a mile away and reach speeds over 150 mph when diving for prey.
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