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April 19th, 2024 | 5:50 PM ET

Insurgent Use of Unmanned Aerial Systems: A Cat-and-Mouse Game

Posted: November 15th, 2016

Last month, Kurdish forces in northern Iraq shot down an Islamic State drone booby-trapped with explosives that later killed two Peshmerga soldiers as they inspected it. The drone was not like the Reaper or Predator drones the U.S. uses to rain Hellfire missiles down in its global war on terror but was instead a small hobby drone, like the many available for purchase online.

This instance marks a larger trend toward insurgent commandeering of small, unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for limited airpower—adding a new level of capabilities to their unconventional playbook. While a few state-sponsored groups, such as Hezbollah and Ukrainian separatists, have used military-grade drones, most insurgents turn to the commercially driven proliferation of hobby drones, presenting a difficult path forward in reining in this new threat.

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