(NewsNation) — The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) released a statement Wednesday in response to questions about a newly surfaced video of an alleged unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP).
What’s now been dubbed a “jellyfish” UAP was allegedly recorded by the U.S. military over a U.S. joint operations base in Iraq around 2018 and released by investigative journalist Jeremy Corbell.
NewsNation has not independently verified this footage.
According to Corbell, the object was officially designated a UAP by the Pentagon, and the footage was taken with thermographic/forward-looking infrared radar.
Sue Gough, spokesperson for the DOD, said in a statement that they “do not comment on the authenticity of alleged DOD material that may have been leaked.”
Gough emphasized the DOD’s commitment to openness and accountability while balancing the necessity to protect sensitive information.
“DOD takes public interest in unidentified anomalous phenomena seriously and is committed to openness and accountability to the American people,” the statement continued. “This commitment must be balanced with the department’s obligation to protect sensitive information, sources, and methods. “
The object, which does resemble a jellyfish, can be seen on video moving through a sensitive military installation before moving over water, where it began what Corbell describes as a controlled descent before submerging.
NewsNation special correspondent Ross Coulthart called the Pentagon’s response “very revealing.”
“I must say it’s very revealing for what it doesn’t say. It doesn’t reveal a categorical denial,” he said. “It’s the last resort of governments and intelligence services when they don’t want to answer a question. Essentially, it’s a neither confirm nor deny.”
Coulthart says the “jellyfish” video “is a very big issue here for the Pentagon.”
“Mr. Corbell is making the direct accusation that this was a designated UAP,” Coulthart pointed out. “That’s not something that’s denied by the Pentagon. I don’t know why it couldn’t be denied if it was untrue. And I think it really does put pressure on the Pentagon to start being more open and transparent with the public.”
Michael Cincoski, a marine who spoke with NewsNation, was an intelligence surveillance recognizance tactical controller at the base in Iraq in 2018. He said he was shown the full video and that soldiers weren’t sure what to make of it.
Cincoski says the video was taken from an aerostat, a big balloon that looks like a blimp and was over the base. It has cameras on it to keep a lookout for threats.
The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), part of the United States Office of the Secretary of Defense, investigates unidentified flying objects (UFOs).
Gough said the AARO will provide updates to the public via its website as it resolves UAP cases, “including sharing the analytic approach and method used for each case, as well as imagery, when approved for public release.”
Corbell has been reporting on unidentified flying objects for years and says his release of the “jellyfish” video is in pursuit of one thing: “Find out what is true about UFOs.”
Corbell calls the footage the latest piece of perplexing footage that has the public wondering what the government truly knows about unidentified objects.
“This is about UFO or UAP transparency. That’s what it’s all about, and if it takes whistleblowers, if it takes leaks … then great, but we want to know what our government has known and has kept back from the American public,” Corbell said on “CUOMO.” “This is the beginning of that.”
Gough said the Department of Defense takes the potential unauthorized disclosure of national security information very seriously.
“DOD organizations, including AARO,” she said in the statement, “regularly emphasize to their workforces the importance of protecting national security information in accordance with information security laws, regulations, and processes.”
NewsNation’s Tyler Wornell and Stephanie Whiteside contributed to this report.
