The declarations have been made during a historic hearing of the House Oversight Committee, focused on the issue of unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAPs) and the need for more transparency on the subject from the military.

The session was opened by the committee’s Republican chairman Glenn Grothman, who stated that a “lack of transparency” had fuelled “wild speculation” and eroded “public trust” in government institutions.

The Committee then heard from several witnesses who claimed they had first-hand experience of interacting with objects that seemed to defy the laws of physics, stating that they posed a national security problem. 

David Grusch, a former leader of the US Department of Defense’s UAP programme, claimed the government conducted a “multi-decade” programme aimed at analysing UFOs. He also claimed the government tried to hide this information and punish potential whistleblowers. 

“I was informed, in the course of my official duties, of...