The U.S. Congress on Thursday held another hearing on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs), or UFOs, where startling claims about alleged government cover-ups and secret programs were again in the spotlight.

In a session marked by shocking allegations, former Department of Defense officials and journalists claimed that the American government possesses advanced, possibly non-human technology and has been involved in secret retrieval programs for years.

The hearing, part of ongoing efforts to increase transparency around UAPs, featured testimony from Luiz Elizondo, a former Defense Department official as well as Michael Shellenberger, a journalist with significant UAP reporting experience among others.

Elizondo reiterated claims he has made in the past, stating the U.S. government may have "technology made off-world by non-human intelligence." He argued that the extreme secrecy around UAPs has hurt government employees, military personnel "all to hide the fact that we are not alone in the cosmos," The Guardian reported.

During the hearing, Congresswoman Nancy Mace asked Elizondo to elaborate on these claims, particularly around a reported program named "Immaculate Constellation" which allegedly manages a repository of evidence and physical material tied to UAPs. Michael Shellenberger said that sources inside the Pentagon have informed him that this secret retrieval program possesses thousands of pieces of evidence, including photos, videos, and other data, amassed over decades.