The syndrome gained attention in Cuba in 2016. U.S. officials stationed in Cuba reported symptoms including headaches, dizziness, blurred vision and memory loss after hearing strange sounds and feeling strange sensations. Initially there were a few dozen cases, with some victims reporting similar symptoms, but later the number expanded significantly and the symptoms became more diverse, making the investigation more difficult. I did. Congress passed and President Biden signed the bill to provide compensation to those affected.
The possible cause of the injuries was identified by the National Academy of Sciences in 2020 as the use of “directed pulsed radio frequency” energy, but until now there was little evidence regarding the perpetrator. The most recent annual threat assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, dated February 5, found that the symptoms were “probably the result of factors not involving a foreign adversary.”
But a new investigation conducted by Russian investigative news agency Insider in collaboration with CBS’ “60 Minutes” and Germany’s Der Spiegel paints a different picture. The report identifies the possible culprit as Unit 29155, a “notorious assassination and sabotage unit” of the GRU, Moscow’s military intelligence agency. Senior members of the unit received awards and political promotions for their work related to the development of “non-lethal acoustic weapons,” a term used in Russian military-scientific literature to describe acoustic and radiofrequency-based directed energy devices. The investigation found documentary evidence that Unit 29155 was “experimenting with exactly the type of weaponization technology” that experts suggested was a plausible cause.
Additionally, Insider reported that geolocation data indicates that an operator assigned to Unit 29155 and traveling undercover was in the area where Havana Syndrome occurred shortly before the incident occurred.
Even more concerning is that the investigation revealed that the American targets had a commonality in their work history related to Russia issues. This included CIA officials who helped build Ukraine’s intelligence capabilities in the years leading up to Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. A veteran of the CIA Kiev office was appointed as the new station chief in Vietnam and was attacked there. A second Ukrainian CIA veteran was attacked in his apartment in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Both agents required medical attention and were treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The wife of a third CIA officer working in Kiev was attacked in London.
“Of all the incidents investigated by the news outlet, the best-documented one involved U.S. intelligence and diplomatic personnel with expertise in Russia and experience operating in countries such as Georgia and Ukraine.” related,” the news agency said. The site was the scene of a popular pro-Western uprising of the past two decades. News outlets point out that Russian President Vladimir Putin blames these “color revolutions” on the CIA and the State Department. They conclude that “President Putin would have every interest in neutralizing the large number of U.S. intelligence agents he believed to be responsible for the loss of the former satellite.”
U.S. intelligence agencies should conduct a thorough and aggressive investigation that considers: all Various Aspects of the Case – Sometimes this is easier said than done in an investigation like this. It should include everything from counterintelligence information, incident investigation data, clinical data, and possible concepts of attack operations based on plausible mechanisms and devices identified in previous research. We need to access all the intelligence available to us, including what was previously buried or ignored, and not be bound by preconceptions about what happened.
In addition to new information, there are also compelling reasons to dig deeper. If the incident is a deliberate attack, the perpetrator must be identified and held accountable. The United States sends a message to those who may harm Americans and to all those who may join our diplomatic or intelligence services that our government will do so at all costs, both abroad and at home. We need to show that we will protect them from foreign enemies.
