Flying multi-colored objects captured by cameras across the skies of the US have gone viral across social media, with no official explanation from the US government as to their source – leading to fears that the country is being exposed to an intelligence attack by hostile countries such as Russia and China.
Conflicting statements
The areas where unidentified objects have been spotted in the sky since late November include the northeastern US, specifically New Jersey and New York.
Following panic and confusion resulting from the lack of confirmed information from officials about these flying objects, the spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security and the White House for National Security Affairs, John Kirby, came out on Thursday to say that many of the reported sightings are in fact “manned aircraft” operating legally.
This has only further fueled speculations that the US government is obscuring the truth, according to the Agence France-Presse.
Angry reactions
There is no evidence yet that these sightings pose a threat to US national security, but seeing the drones with flashing red and green lights has raised concerns that the country has been exposed to a security breach – which would mark a new failure for the Joe Biden administration, as President-elect Donald Trump hinted at in a post on his platform “Truth Social”.
Trump said that he does not believe that what happened could have happened without the government’s knowledge and that the public must know the truth immediately or “drop it”.
The mayor of Monmouth County in New Jersey also criticized the national authorities for their lack of response, and warned the public not to shoot at the drones.
A threat to America’s national security?
In October, the Wall Street Journal reported that there were mysterious drones hovering near US military installations in Virginia.
New Jersey Republican Representative Jeff Van Drew commented by saying that they came from an Iranian ship in the Atlantic Ocean, but the Pentagon was quick to deny that comment, claiming that “there is no evidence to prove that.”
Deputy Defense Department spokesperson Sabrina Singh confirmed that there was no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States, which rules out its involvement in the strange phenomenon.
Instead of seeking to explain it, the Federal Aviation Administration imposed temporary flight restrictions prohibiting drone flights over certain areas, warning in a statement against fines of up to US$75,000 on drone operators who conduct “unsafe or dangerous” operations.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
