India, April 19 -- US President Donald Trump has directed the FBI to investigate a series of deaths and disappearances involving government workers who were somehow linked to sensitive nuclear and space programmes, amid swirling public speculation about whether the cases are "connected to UFOs".

Evidence-agnostic theories about "unidentified flying objects" and "space aliens" are now dominating online chatter in the US in particular, and Trump, currently facing a stalemate in his war on Iran, has sought to intervene in that area.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the inquiry on Friday, stating that the administration was "actively working with all relevant agencies and the FBI to holistically review all of the cases...