Fury grows as US politicians demand answers about mysterious drones | american news

The governor of New Jersey has demanded that Joe Biden take control of an investigation into mysterious and more frequent sightings of several large drones flying over his state amid growing frustration that federal officials are downplaying the incidents.

Democrat Phil Murphy is released on Friday a letter he wrote to the White House to express his “growing concern” after Pentagon and FBI officials ruled out the involvement of the U.S. military, or hostile foreign actors, in several sightings of unexplained flying objects over about a dozen counties since mid- November.

“It has become clear that more resources are needed to fully understand what is behind this activity,” he wrote in the letter, published the same day as reports of more drones breaching the airspace at Naval Weapons Station Earle in Monmouth county.

“I respectfully urge you to continue to direct the federal agencies involved to work together until they reveal answers to what is behind the UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) sightings.”

Irritation has grown among politicians and law enforcement in New Jersey after several reports of drone flights in recent weeks, including nearly 50 on Sunday night alone, according to NJ.comand a dismissal of them by the White House on Thursday that they were, at least for the most part, “manned aircraft … operated legally”.

Some of the accounts described drones the size of cars, sometimes in groups, flying over sensitive military installations and critical infrastructure such as railway stations, reservoirs and power plants. In response, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) imposed a no-fly zone over an Army facility in Morris County and President-elect Donald Trump’s golf resort in Bedminster.

At the naval weapons station, ABC News reported, a spokesman said no direct threat had been identified, but personnel were working closely “with federal and state agencies to ensure the safety of our personnel and operations”.

The White House, the Pentagon and the FBI have all said they cannot fully explain the origin of the drones, but have indicated a belief that they are nothing sinister.

“We have no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign connection,” John Kirby, national security spokesman for the Biden administration, told reporters at a press briefing Thursday.

He said an unspecified number of still images and video footage of the incidents were analyzed using “sophisticated electronic detection technologies” and were not determined to have involved drones.

“Rather, after reviewing available imagery, it appears that many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft being operated legally,” Kirby said.

“Importantly, there are no reported or confirmed drone sightings in any restricted airspace,” he added, appearing to contradict the account of the breach at the naval weapons station.

ONE joint statement of the FBI and Department of Homeland Security said investigations “have not revealed such malicious activity or intent at this stage” in New Jersey – but noted that “the reported sightings there … highlight the inadequacy of current authorities”.

The sightings in New Jersey have parallels to incidents in Europe in recent weeks that also involve unidentified aircraft and military facilities. A US airbase in Ramstein, Germany, was reportedly targeted; and several “small unmanned aerial systems” were seen last month over three British RAF bases used by the US Air Force.

Kirby’s comments, effectively ruling out overseas involvement, echoed those of Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary, from a day earlier. “Our first assessment here is that these are not drones or activities coming from a foreign entity or adversary,” she said.

The government’s explanation, or lack thereof, has not impressed politicians, including Murphy in New Jersey, who want more action to protect citizens. Republican Congressman Jeff Van Drew told the House Aviation Subcommittee on Wednesday that he believed in the drones can be linked to Iranand warned of a possible national security threat.

Andy Kim, the Democratic senator from New Jersey, on Friday posted a video for X from what he said were several clusters of unidentified flying craft moving erratically, low and at speed, each with flashing lights in red, green and white. He said he filmed them on Thursday night in the company of local police – and that the objects did not show up on a regular flight tracker.

Sightings have also extended well beyond New Jersey. Larry Hogan, the former Republican governor of Maryland, said in a tweet on Friday that he had “personally seen and videotaped what appeared to be dozens of large drones” over his house in Davidsonville on Thursday night, adding that the incident lasted about 45 minutes.

“Like many who have observed these drones, I don’t know if this increasing activity in our skies is a threat to public safety or national security. But the public is becoming increasingly concerned and frustrated with the complete lack of transparency and the federal government dismissive attitude,” he wrote.

“The government has the ability to trace these from their point of origin but has launched a negligent response. People are rightly crying out for answers but are getting none.”

Some areas of New York have also seen drone activity. In a tweet posted Friday around lunchtimeKathy Hochul, the state’s Democratic governor, echoed the administration’s line that there is “no evidence that these drones pose a threat to public safety or national security,” and said state officials were working with partners including the FBI and the Department of homeland security “to protect New Yorkers”.

Republican New York politicians, meanwhile, were not so accepting. Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella condemned the federal response at a news conference Thursday afternoon.

“What if there were 3,000 reports of sightings of drones or manned aircraft over the US Capitol or the White House or the Statehouse in Albany? There would be an immediate and intense response to find out what they were and fix the problem,” said he.

“Millions of people around here are getting nothing but “don’t believe what you see.” about it’.

“The people of this city, this state and region deserve answers to what the hell is going on.”