US intelligence services see a 50:50 chance that Havana Syndrome is the result of aggression by hostile powers

Neue Zürcher Zeitung Germany US intelligence services see a 50:50 chance that Havana Syndrome is the result of aggression by hostile powers David Signer, Chicago • 18 hours • 3 minutes reading time The American embassy in the Cuban capital of Havana, which gave the mysterious illnesses their name. After the American intelligence services had given the all-clear and declared that there were no attacks by hostile powers behind Havana Syndrome, the pendulum has now swung in the other direction. There are increasing signs that not everything is above board. For years, people have been puzzling over what Havana Syndrome is all about - the mysterious illnesses that American diplomats, spies and soldiers suffer from. Vision problems, headaches, vomiting, dizziness, chronic pain, restricted mobility and even brain damage are typical symptoms. Speculation about science fiction weapons The first known cases appeared almost ten years ago in the American embassy in the Cuban capital, later other victims came forward from as diverse parts of the world as Russia, China, India, Vienna, Geneva and even from near the White House. Around 1,500 cases have been registered to date. The children of those affected often suffered health damage as well. For a long time, Moscow was suspected to be behind the attacks, but what technology could be behind them remained a mystery. Pulsed microwaves were occasionally mentioned, but experts express doubts that any government has such science fiction weapons and wonder how exactly they are supposed to work. That is why the then intelligence coordinator Avril Haines wrote on March 1, 2023 in a surprisingly clear report, which is only available in a half-redacted version, that it was assumed that the illnesses had normal causes and declared the matter closed. Since then, the official, emphatically neutral term for the syndrome has been "Anomalous Health Incidents". New analyses put previous positions into perspective But for the past three months, this consensus has been crumbling. It began when, under President Joe Biden, six victims of Havana Syndrome, all intelligence officers, were invited to the Situation Room of the White House at the invitation of the National Security Council (NSC). Officially, the aim was to compile a manual for dealing with such problems for the next administration under Trump. But those affected were apparently given the signal that Biden and the NSC, based on new research, are taking Havana Syndrome more seriously than the intelligence services. At the beginning of December, the House Intelligence Committee concluded in a report that a foreign enemy was most likely behind at least some of the cases. Who exactly was not said. There is reliable evidence for this assumption, wrote Republican committee chairman Rick Crawford in the report. The theory that the cases were based on environmental or social factors is wrong based on his research. Shortly before leaving the government, Biden's intelligence coordinator Haines published an update on January 10 of the report that gave the all-clear two years ago. The updated report leaves room for the possibility that an attack could be behind the incidents. To be more precise: Two of the seven intelligence agencies involved in the report now say there is a 50:50 chance that the Havana Syndrome was caused by aggression by hostile powers. Apparently they have intercepted information that suggests that enemy countries, which are not named, have made greater progress in developing such weapons than previously thought. The other five agencies are sticking to their original view that all cases could be explained by normal circumstances. The report does not say which secret services the deviants are, but the American magazine "The Atlantic" suspects, based on informants, that they include the National Security Agency (NSA). Criticism of the CIA by the victims This means that there is not only a difference of opinion on this issue between the House Intelligence Committee and the secret services, but also within the various secret services themselves. In the crosshairs of the critics, including from the ranks of those affected by Havana Syndrome themselves, is the foreign intelligence service CIA, which was in charge of the 2023 downplaying report. The victims, some of whom became so seriously ill that they are no longer able to work, are becoming increasingly angry. There is a feeling that they are not being taken seriously.