Nearly 500,000 People Have Pledged to Ambush Area 51: ‘Lets See Them Aliens’ (UPDATE)

The Facebook event invites people around the world to raid the military base on Sept. 20.

Alien
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Alien

UPDATED 7/13/19: The military has responded to the Facebook event, urging interested parties to reconsider their participation. 

"[Area 51] is an open training range for the U.S. Air Force, and we would discourage anyone from trying to come into the area where we train American armed forces,"Air Force spokeswoman Laura McAndrews told the Washington Post. "The U.S. Air Force always stands ready to protect America and its assets."

As of Saturday afternoon, more than 698,000 users have RSVP'd to the event.

Read the original story below.

Grab your tinfoil hats and running shoes, because an ambush of Area 51 is going down next month. Supposedly.

The mysterious military base has been the subject of countless conspiracy theories, most of which are of the extraterrestrial variety. For decades, many have believed that the Nevada district served as a holding site for aliens and UFOs—a theory that has been widely referenced in pop culture. Though the military officially acknowledged the base in 2013, its purpose remains a mystery. Which is why nearly half a million Facebook users have committed to invading Area 51 in a couple of months.

As of Friday afternoon, more than 480,000 people have signed up for the Facebook event called "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us." But, as you tell by its description, it's not at all serious.

"We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry," the event page reads, before referencing the Naruto Uzumaki anime character. "If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets see them aliens."

The ambush is scheduled to take place from 3-6 a.m. on Sept. 20. The event was created in part by user "Shitposting cause im in shambles," which further underscores the joke. 

Though there are many people who are taking this event seriously, it appears the majority of those who RSVP'd are just having fun. You can check out some of the reactions to the event below. 

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