For years, American diplomats have been plagued by a previously unexplained illness. Now the American intelligence services are making new discoveries.
The reason for the illness of many American diplomats remains unclear. According to media reports, US intelligence does not assume a “foreign adversary” is responsible for the so-called Havana Syndrome among US diplomats – thus contradicting an earlier report (more on this here).
The Washington Post reported Wednesday, citing two intelligence personnel, that this is the preliminary finding of years of intelligence investigations into mysterious illnesses of embassy staff.
There is still no reasonable explanation for the cases. The newspaper quoted one employee as saying it was a frustrating “puzzle”. Secret services are open to new ideas and evidence.
Headache, hearing loss, dizziness and nausea
Since 2016, several US diplomats living in Havana, Cuba, and their families have complained of vague headaches, hearing loss, dizziness, and nausea. Then the number of embassy staff was reduced to a minimum. Similar complaints were later reported elsewhere in the world. The US government has not ruled out that this could be some kind of attack – but has always maintained that it does not know what is behind it.
According to the Washington Post, seven US secret services have examined more than a thousand cases in nearly a hundred countries. Five of those authorities concluded that it was “extremely unlikely” that a foreign adversary using an energy source was responsible for the symptoms.
Affected belief in the attack
One authority adhered to the “unlikely” rating, and another abstained. Last year, an independent expert panel came to the conclusion that some cases of Havana syndrome could be caused by some type of targeted use of electromagnetic radiation.
Many of those affected claim to have been victims of a premeditated attack. Time and time again, Russia is mentioned as a possible cause of complaints. According to the Washington Post, the current report almost completely contradicts this thesis. The diplomats involved have repeatedly accused the US government of downplaying the symptoms.
