Unidentified Object Shot Down Over Canada in Latest Incident

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(Bloomberg) — The US shot down an unidentified airborne object over northern Canada on Saturday, the third time this month that jets were deployed to counter such aerial incursions.  

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The North American Aerospace Defense Command earlier Saturday said it had identified the high-altitude object. Canadian and US aircraft were scrambled and a US F-22 fighter jet successfully took it down over the Yukon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a tweet.

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The latest incident comes after the recent incursion of a Chinese balloon over US and Canadian territory that shone a spotlight on Beijing’s alleged surveillance programs and sparked a diplomatic standoff between the world superpowers. The US also downed another unidentified object in Alaska Friday near the Canadian border. 

Canadian Forces will recover and analyze the wreckage of the object, Trudeau said, adding that he spoke with US President Joe Biden. 

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It’s unclear what the latest object is and where it originated. But the US has accused China of a years-long surveillance program in which it deployed spy balloons across the globe, a claim rejected by Beijing. 

A US intelligence report released in January said reporting of unidentified aerial phenomena has increased, as the stigma surrounding claims of UFO sightings lessens and awareness increases about the threats such objects may pose.

Read more: UFO Sighting Reports to Government Increase as Stigma Lifts

NORAD is a US-Canada organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning, aerospace control and maritime warning for North America. 

—With assistance from Jenny Leonard.

(Updates with background, other details.)