CIA Director Reveals 100 Members Have Mysterious Disease Havana Syndrome, Russia Denies Being Involved

CIA Director William Burns. (Wikimedia Commons/U.S. Department of State)

JAKARTA - About 100 members of the CIA's US intelligence agency and family members are among about 200 US officials and relatives affected by a mysterious disease.

This was disclosed directly by CIA Director William Burns Thursday, July 22 local time. Burns said they suffer from 'Havana Syndrome', a series of mysterious illnesses that include migraines and dizziness.

Burns, who was appointed by US President Joe Biden as the first career diplomat to serve as CIA chief, said in a National Public Radio (NPR) interview he had supported his agency's efforts to determine the cause of the syndrome and what was responsible.

He confirmed a number of measures taken by his side, such as the appointment of a senior officer who had led the hunt for Osama bin Laden to head the task force investigating the syndrome, to multiplying the medical team personnel involved in the investigation.

The CIA has also shortened the waiting list for CIA-affiliated individuals to enter the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, from eight weeks to two weeks.

"I think it's a great obligation for every leader to ensure the safety of his people. And this is what I will try to do," Burns told NPR in his first interview since becoming CIA director in March.

Havana syndrome, with symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, migraines, and impaired memory, is so named because it was first reported by US officials based at the US Embassy in Havana, Cuba in 2016.

Burns noted that a US National Academy of Sciences panel in December found a plausible theory that the syndrome was caused by a beam of directed energy. There is a "very strong possibility" that the syndrome was intentionally caused, and that Russia could be responsible, he said, adding that he withholding definitive conclusions pending further investigation. Moscow itself denies involvement in this.