No Iranian drone 'mothership' off the United States

12/12/2024 6:10

The Pentagon said on

Wednesday that there was no evidence that drones that had been

spotted over New Jersey were from a foreign entity or adversary

and dismissed a claim by a U.S. lawmaker that they were being

launched from an Iranian "mothership."



Earlier in the day, Republican Congressman Jeff Van Drew

suggested that the drones were being launched from an Iranian

"mothership" that was stationed off the U.S. East Coast.



"What we’ve uncovered is alarming—drones flying in from

the direction of the ocean, possibly linked to a missing Iranian

mothership," he said on X, formerly known as Twitter.



The Pentagon said there was no Iranian mothership.



"There is no truth to that. There is no Iranian ship off

the coast of the United States and there's no so-called

'mothership' launching drones towards the United States,"

Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters.



Singh said that drones spotted were not from the U.S.

military either and the issue was being investigated by local

law enforcement.



Singh added that U.S. military had not shot down any drones

since they did not pose a threat to any military installations.



In an interview with Fox News, Republican Congressman

Jeff Van Drew claimed that the drones were being launched from

an Iranian "mothership" that was stationed off the U.S. East

Coast.



At his weekly press conference, House Democratic Leader

Hakeem Jeffries was asked about the lack of information about

the drones.



"We need a greater degree of transparency from law

enforcement authorities and we will make sure that happens in

the days and weeks to come," Jeffries said.