Panel Of Experts Reveals Possible Causes Of Mysterious Havana Syndrome Attacking US Diplomats And Intelligence

United States Embassy in Havana, Cuba. (Wikimedia Commons/RG72)

JAKARTA - U.S. diplomats and intelligence agents afflicted with the mysterious disease Havana Syndrome could be subjected to pulses of electromagnetic energy, according to a report to U.S. intelligence chiefs released Wednesday.

"Electromagnetic energy pulses, especially in the radio frequency range, plausibly explain" earache, vertigo and other symptoms of some of those suffering from the disease that was first reported by US diplomats in the Cuban capital (Havana) in 2016," said the experts from inside and outside the US Government, citing Reuters, February 3.

The panel of experts was formed by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and CIA Deputy Director David Cohen.

The combination of symptoms "cannot be easily explained by the environment or known medical conditions" among some victims. The number of those people was not disclosed in the executive summary of the undisclosed report. Meanwhile, cases like this have been reported in Russia, China, Tajikistan, and several African countries.

The findings echo a 2020 National Academy of Sciences study, based on an internal CIA report on January 20 that concluded it was unlikely that Russia or other foreign adversaries were behind most of the so-called "anomalous health incidents."

The CIA report, however, said there were about two dozen cases from 1,000 US diplomats and intelligence agents, which remained unexplained.

The report released on Wednesday did not investigate liability. But the conclusion is likely to spark frustration among past and current US officials, who have no clear explanation for their chronic plight.

"We don't look at attribution or assigning it to adversaries or foreign actors. We're stuck on a causal mechanism," a US official familiar with the report told reporters.

The findings reinforce the need for a coordinated and holistic government approach, Mark Zaid, a lawyer representing victims from various US government agencies, said in a statement.

"These fragmentary agency reviews sometimes reveal inconsistent and equally contradictory results," he explained.

Eric Lander, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, said in a statement the panel worked for nearly nine months. The report is the first of several expert groups to have broad access "to intelligence reporting and patient data."

The panel found the symptoms genuine and interesting based on medical reports and interviews with doctors and victims.

In finding pulses of electromagnetic energy could be the cause, the panel said "there are information gaps" but there are several plausible ways the energy could be generated "each with its own requirements, limitations, and unknowns."

Such sources exist that are "hiddenable and have moderate power requirements," the report said. "Using non-standard antennas and techniques, the signal can be propagated at a low loss" through the air and building materials.

Individuals who are accidentally exposed to electromagnetic energy signals, which include radio waves, microwaves, and X-rays, have reported sensations similar to those reported by victims of Havana Syndrome, the report noted.

Ultrasound can also shed light on the symptoms, but only if the victim is near the beam, as ultrasound spreads poorly through the air and building materials."

Psychosocial factors, which include job demands, stress, and depression, cannot explain the core symptoms of Havana Syndrome, he said.

The report offers recommendations to help understand, prevent and manage suffering, including collecting and coordinating US Government medical incidents and data.