WAR.gov/UFO is a new official U.S. government website run by the Department of War to publish declassified but still unexplained UFO/UAP cases under a directive from President Donald Trump. It’s designed as a public archive of unresolved sightings and documents, not as a grand reveal of confirmed alien visitors.war+3
What the site is
The site is presented as the home of the “Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters” (PURSUE), created on Trump’s orders to track down, declassify and publish records about Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena held across the federal government. It’s described as a joint effort involving the Department of War, the intelligence community, NASA, the FBI, the Department of Energy and other agencies that might hold relevant material.war+3
Front and centre is Trump’s February 19, 2026 directive, which leans into the huge public interest in UFOs and promises to release records “in the federal government’s possession” wherever possible. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s statement pitches the site as a push for “unprecedented transparency,” acknowledging that older classified files have helped fuel speculation and saying the administration now wants people to see the material for themselves.war+1
What’s in Release 01
The first batch of material, “Release 01,” went live on May 8, 2026 and pulls together a selection of declassified but unresolved UAP cases. News coverage reports that the drop includes more than 160 items ranging from videos and photographs to internal documents sourced from the Department of War, the FBI, the State Department, NASA and other parts of the government.
These files span decades, from classic mid‑20th‑century UFO material through to modern military encounters, and they include infrared video, still imagery and scanned reports or correspondence. One example highlighted in reporting is a 2024 case in the U.S. Indo‑Pacific Command area, involving a “football‑shaped” object near Japan that investigators have not been able to explain with the data available. Each entry comes with basic context such as date, originating agency and declassification notes, but in many cases the official conclusion is simply that the incident remains unresolved.
How officials are framing it
Officials are keen to stress that the site focuses on cases where analysts could not reach a firm conclusion, either because the data is limited or conflicting. The Department of War invites independent researchers and private‑sector experts to dig into the material and apply their own tools and models, effectively turning the site into a government‑backed data source for anyone interested in UAP.
At the same time, senior defence and intelligence officials continue to say they have not verified alien spacecraft, recovered non‑human technology or proven the existence of extraterrestrial life. A 2024 UAP assessment, referenced in coverage of the site, explicitly notes that investigations have not found evidence that would confirm alien visitors, despite persistent rumours and claims. In other words, WAR.gov/UFO is meant to show the public what remains unexplained, not to announce that the question has been settled.
