British troops to be given powers to shoot down drones on sight

British troops will be given new powers to shoot down drones threatening the country’s military bases, The Telegraph reported on Oct 19, citing an expected announcement on Oct 20 from Defence Minister John Healey.

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Mr Healey is expected to unveil his vision on how to protect Britain's most critical military bases in response to a growing threat posed by Russia, the newspaper said.

Although the new powers will initially apply only for military sites, the British government was “not ruling out working to extend those powers” to other important sites like airports, the Telegraph said, citing a source.