Cecilia Lei

Dan LaMoth is a Pentagon reporter for The Washington Post.

He told us the sudden decision caught everyone off guard.

And yet, despite the order, airspace opened just a few hours later.

This confusion appears to center on government departments at odds with one another.

The Trump administration didn't address claims of miscommunication publicly.

Instead, they said that drones operated by Mexican cartels had breached U.S.

airspace.

Multiple outlets reported that the Pentagon gave Customs and Border Protection the green light to use the lasers without coordinating with the Federal Aviation Administration.

But it's not even clear what they actually hit.

Reports suggest aviation officials had warned a closure like this could happen if they weren't given the time to review how laser systems might cause disruptions, and a meeting was in place to discuss the technology next week.

El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson criticized the disruption in his community.

Meanwhile, El Paso's Democratic Representative Veronica Escobar said she was skeptical of the administration's explanation, suggesting that drone invasions at the border are common in the region for as long as drones have been around.

Lamothe told us the Pentagon wants the authority to use counter-drone systems for the border and for big events like the upcoming World Cup.

But, as yesterday demonstrated, those systems might run into trouble with routine travel.

Texas Senator Ted Cruz said that he will schedule a classified briefing about the temporary closure to figure out more details of the incident.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was at the White House yesterday as foreign policy watchers searched for signs of movement on two major issues, sustaining a fragile peace in Gaza and looming military action in Iran.

Just yesterday, the Pentagon ordered a second aircraft carrier to prepare for Middle East deployment, according to a Wall Street Journal briefing.

Recent indirect talks between the U.S.

and Iran have focused on further limiting their much-diminished nuclear program or face potential strikes.

Israel wants those talks to include limits on Iran's ballistic program.