The US Pentagon has unveiled its latest collection of previously classified documents pertaining to Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs), commonly known as UFOs. This third release of files, part of an ongoing commitment to transparency, includes accounts of unusual aerial sightings but, like its predecessors, provides no definitive evidence of extraterrestrial life.
Among the newly publicised reports are descriptions of mysterious glowing orbs observed hovering above an unspecified north-eastern US city in 2025 and 2026. These sightings reportedly garnered enough interest from the FBI to prompt an investigation, with agents interviewing witnesses who described fast-moving red and white objects. One witness recalled seeing flashing red lights in 1987, comparing them to the front of 'Kit' from the TV show 'Nightrider', indicating a long-standing interest in UAPs.
Another notable incident detailed in the documents dates back to summer 2008 in Zimbabwe, where the CIA investigated a report of an "unidentified object hovering at high altitude over Harare international airport." Described as a disc-like object with rotating lights and emanating beams, the report speculated it could be either an "advanced reconnaissance device belonging to a foreign government" or an "unidentified flying object of extraterrestrial origin." The FBI, however, made no conclusive determination.
A 2022 event in Colorado Springs also features, where military personnel reported an object resembling an "angular, non-symmetrical potato" in the sky. While an initial assessment suggested it was sunlight reflecting off mountain snow onto low-altitude clouds, the government's all-domain anomaly resolution office (AARO) deemed this a "low-confidence assessment," leaving the incident unresolved.
Despite the US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's assertion that these releases demonstrate the Trump administration's "earnest commitment to unprecedented transparency," the Pentagon consistently reiterates that all hundreds of files released so far represent "unresolved cases." This stance has led some critics, including former Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, to label the releases as a "look at the shiny object" propaganda, suggesting they serve as a distraction from other pressing issues faced by the administration.