Havana Syndrome

The US now knows which country is responsible for the Havana Syndrome, but is trying to discuss things behind the scenes rather than going after staffers from that country.

China

U.S. Officials in Germany Hit by Havana Syndrome

BERLIN—At least two U.S. officials stationed in Germany sought medical treatment after developing symptoms of the mysterious health complaint known as Havana Syndrome, U.S. diplomats said.

The symptoms, which included nausea, severe headaches, ear pain, fatigue, insomnia and sluggishness, began to emerge in recent months and some victims were left unable to work, the diplomats said. They are the first cases to be reported in a NATO country that hosts U.S. troops and nuclear weapons.

U.S. diplomats said similar incidents had been registered among American officials stationed in other European nations, but declined to provide any detail.

Some victims were intelligence officers or diplomats working on Russia-related issues such as gas exports, cybersecurity and political interference, U.S. diplomats and people familiar with an investigation into the illness said.

NBC News reported in July about at least one Havana Syndrome case among Berlin-based U.S. diplomats. – Source

Microwave energy likely behind illnesses of American diplomats in Cuba and China

A radio frequency energy of radiation that includes microwaves likely caused American diplomats in China and Cuba to fall ill with neurological symptoms over the past four years, a report published Saturday finds.

Why it matters: The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s report does not attribute blame for the suspected attacks, but it notes there “was significant research in Russia/USSR into the effects of pulsed, rather than continuous wave [radio frequency] exposures.”

It also states that military personnel in “Eurasian communist countries” were exposed to non-thermal radiation.

Driving the news: The State Department commissioned the report after government personnel and their families began falling ill at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, in late 2016 and the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, China, in early 2017.

There were reports of 40 State Department staff experiencing symptoms including ear pain, intense head pressure or vibration, dizziness, visual problems, and cognitive difficulties.
“Many still continue to experience these or other health problems,” the study authors note in a statement.
Canada’s government has confirmed 14 of its citizens also fell ill in Cuba’s capital, in what became known as “Havana syndrome,” the Ottawa Citizen notes. – Source

Microwave weapons that could cause Havana Syndrome exist, experts say

Portable microwave weapons capable of causing the mysterious spate of “Havana Syndrome” brain injuries in US diplomats and spies have been developed by several countries in recent years, according to leading American experts in the field.

A US company also made the prototype of such a weapon for the marine corps in 2004. The weapon, codenamed Medusa, was intended to be small enough to fit in a car, and cause a “temporarily incapacitating effect” but “with a low probability of fatality or permanent injury”.

There is no evidence that the research was taken beyond the prototype phase, and a report on that stage has been removed from a US navy website. Scientists with knowledge of the project said that ethical considerations preventing human experimentation contributed to the project being shelved – but they said such consideration had not hindered US adversaries, including Russia, and possibly China. – Source