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Trump releases new batch of previously classified UFO files

The Trump administration has released a second batch of previously classified files on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), including documents, audio recordings, and videos. The material spans 80 years of reported sightings, but officials say it offers no definitive evidence of extraterrestrial life.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 1 article Version 1 Coverage May 23, 2026 Published Aug 13

Trump Administration Releases Second Batch of Classified UFO Files

The Trump administration has released a second batch of previously classified files on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), according to multiple reports. The material, made public on Friday, includes documents, audio recordings, and videos related to sightings that date back decades.

The Pentagon said the files are linked to 209 sightings of UAPs across various locations, as reported by Al Jazeera and the BBC. The release follows an earlier batch uploaded on May 8, which contained 161 files. The latest tranche includes a half dozen documents, a handful of audio recordings, and 51 videos, according to the BBC.

One of the newly released documents is a 116-page report from the Armed Forces Special Weapons Program, dated between 1948 and 1950. The report recounts 209 sightings of unidentified objects, described by witnesses as "green orbs, discs and fireballs," as reported by the BBC. It also includes accounts of sightings and investigations in Sandia, New Mexico, where witnesses described objects that maneuvered, flew away, disappeared, and then exploded.

The files also include a first-hand account from an unnamed senior US intelligence officer who reported seeing "countless orange orbs swarming in all directions" last year. The officer described the objects as "oval-shaped, orange with a white or yellow centre," emitting light in all directions. He said the encounter lasted more than an hour and included a series of close UAP encounters while investigating "loud thuds heard in the mountains" on a test range in the western United States.

Despite the dramatic descriptions, the files do not draw any definitive conclusions about the existence of extraterrestrial life, nor do they provide evidence of alien technology, according to the BBC. The circumstances of the sightings remain unexplained.

The release is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to declassify government records related to UAPs. Earlier this year, President Trump ordered the release of classified files, and the Pentagon has been uploading materials in batches.

Observers note that the latest release adds to a growing body of government documents on UAPs, but it stops short of confirming any extraordinary claims. The Pentagon has consistently stated that UAP sightings are real but remain unidentified, and that further analysis is ongoing.

The release has generated renewed public interest in UFOs, but officials caution that many sightings may have conventional explanations. The files are available for public review through official government channels.

As the administration continues to declassify records, future releases may provide additional context, but for now, the newest batch offers a fascinating glimpse into decades of military and intelligence reports on unidentified aerial phenomena, without answering the ultimate question of what they are.

How this outlet told it

BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC

Framing: Neutral, focusing on the release of UFO files — Informative, objective

Facts Included:

The Pentagon released scores of UFO files on Friday
Descriptions of reported sightings of orbs, discs and fireballs spanning 80 years
A senior US intelligence officer saw countless orange orbs swarming in all directions last year
The fresh batch of materials includes a half dozen documents, a handful of audio recordings and 51 videos
One of the documents is a 116-page Armed Forces Special Weapons Program report from 1948-1950
The report includes accounts of a series of sightings and investigations in Sandia, New Mexico
The files do not draw any definitive conclusions about the existence of extraterrestrial life or provide any evidence of alien technology

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimThe Pentagon released scores of UFO files on Friday with descriptions of reported sightings of orbs, discs and fireballs spanning 80 years.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimA senior US intelligence officer saw countless orange orbs swarming in all directions last year.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC
ClaimThe fresh batch of materials includes a half dozen documents, a handful of audio recordings and 51 videos.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC
ClaimOne of the documents is a 116-page Armed Forces Special Weapons Program report from 1948-1950.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC
ClaimThe report includes accounts of a series of sightings and investigations in Sandia, New Mexico.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC
ClaimThe files do not draw any definitive conclusions about the existence of extraterrestrial life or provide any evidence of alien technology.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via BBC — World as of May 23, 2026, 3:45 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

2 outlets · 2 articles consulted: Al Jazeera, BBC — World 8 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-13