Anthony Blinken.Photo: Susan Walsh/AP/Shutterstock
Still, Secretary of StateAntony Blinkensaid last week that his agency “will leave no stone unturned to get to the bottom of” the root cause of the issue.
The so-called syndrome, named for where it was first reported, has confounded researchers since late 2016, when U.S. and Canadian embassy staff in Cuba began experiencing symptoms consistent with those who suffer from brain injuries.
A number of people have since reported medical symptoms, though a common cause has not been discovered. Skeptics say the cases are being over-interpreted, though some of those who have experienced the symptomshave spoken outand saidthey are being marginalized.
The U.S. reduced staff at its embassy in Cuba in response to the cases and in 2018, U.S. diplomats inChinareported similar problems.
UndercoverCIAagents working in other countries have also reportedly experienced the symptoms, which include headaches, memory loss and nausea.
The State Department announced in July it was investigatingreports of illnesses with similar symptoms among up to two dozen U.S. officialsstationed in Vienna that had cropped up since the beginning of the year.
A number of the cases began in a similar fashion, withNeurology Todayreporting that suspected victimsfirst heard strange grating noises, similar to what occurs when driving a car with the window partially rolled down, before experiencing the other symptoms later.
The science behind thisis a matter of debateamong doctors and medical experts. Some have speculated that the symptoms could be the result of microwave weapons, which can cause sonic delusions andbrain damage. Othersdisagree.
The intelligence community is coming to its own conclusion, with the CIA ruling out foreign involvement in hundreds of cases of the ailment, instead finding plausible alternative explanations in a new assessment, according toNBC News. Sources familiar with the assessment told the network that the agency disputes the notion that Russia or another foreign country may be behind all of the symptoms, as some sort of larger, microwave-based attack.
NBC News reported Wednesday that the agency wasn’t yet ruling out foreign involvement in the cases that spurred it all — those that originated at the U.S. Embassy in Havana beginning in 2016.
He continued: “And we are going to continue to do everything we can with all the resources we can bring to bear to understand, again, what happened, why, and who might be responsible. And we are leaving no stone unturned.”
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Though the State Department did not offer further details at the time, “anomalous health incident” is the term the U.S. government has previously used to described the Havana Syndrome.
According to a statement from the State Department, Harris' delegation “was delayed from departing Singapore because the Vice President’s office was made aware of a report of a recent possible anomalous health incident in Hanoi, Vietnam. After careful assessment, the decision was made to continue with the Vice President’s trip.”
source: people.com
