Havana Syndrome
Is ‘Havana Syndrome’ an ‘act of war’ or ‘mass hysteria’ - Spencer Bokat-Lindell

image by: Asia de Cuba
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The Mystery of ‘Havana Syndrome’
A long time ago, soon after I arrived in the Soviet Union as a young wire service reporter and became acutely aware that I was being followed, my eye began to twitch.
It became hard to work, so I flew to Paris to have it checked out. By the time I landed the twitching had stopped, and the doctor who checked it out found nothing wrong.
Back in Moscow, at a chance meeting with the U.S. Embassy doctor, I recounted this incident. Nothing strange there, he said: “Everybody gets the ‘Moscow Eye’ soon after they arrive and it soon goes away.”
I took him to mean that it was a nervous reaction to the novel stress of finding oneself in a hostile state, secretly watched…
Resources
Havana Syndrome or a Case for Eliminating the Implausible
Diplomats in Cuba fell ill. Some suspected a secret weapon. Five years later, a more benign explanation remains.
Rush to stop ‘Havana syndrome’
The cause of these illnesses has not been identified, but one theory is high-intensity microwaves may be to blame. Russia has a well-documented history dating back to Josef Stalin of using microwaves against the U.S. to disrupt intelligence operations.
What is Havana syndrome, the puzzling malady plaguing Western diplomats?
Potential culprits range from sonic weapons to microwaves—and even nothing at all.
‘Havana syndrome ’ and the mystery of the microwaves
Doctors, scientists, intelligence agents and government officials have all been trying to find out what causes "Havana syndrome" - a mysterious illness that has struck American diplomats and spies. Some call it an act of war, others wonder if it is some new and secret form of surveillance - and some people believe it could even be all in the mind. So who or what is responsible?
Are U.S. Officials Under Silent Attack?
The Havana Syndrome first affected spies and diplomats in Cuba. Now it has spread to the White House.
Directed energy weapons shoot painful but non-lethal beams – are similar weapons behind the Havana syndrome?
If Havana syndrome turns out to be caused by weapons that shoot energy beams, they won’t be the first such weapons. As an aerospace engineer and former Vice Chair of the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Board, I’ve researched directed energy. I can also personally attest to the effectiveness of directed energy weapons.
Havana Syndrome: What We Know
Initially, investigators believed the syndrome was the result of an attack by a sonic or acoustic weapon. However, a comprehensive analysis by a U.S. scientific panel in December theorized that exposure to a type of directed energy was the most likely culprit.
Is Someone Brain-Zapping American Operatives?
Havana Syndrome got its name because of where it first emerged Cuba in late 2016. But since then, one incident after another has piled up in other countries China, Russia, Austria diplomats and CIA officers, even White House employees have been struck.
Is ‘Havana Syndrome’ an ‘Act of War’ or ‘Mass Hysteria’?
The cause, however, remains shrouded in mystery, speculation and doubt: The leading theory among American intelligence officials reportedly ascribes the illness not just to “targeted attacks,” but to targeted attacks executed with secret microwave weapons wielded by agents of hostile foreign powers.
New cases of 'Havana Syndrome' grow as cause remains a mystery
NPR's Sarah McCammon talks with Stanford professor David Relman about the mysterious Havana Syndrome that continues to affect diplomats and federal employees around the world.
Reports of possible “Havana syndrome” attacks are now documented in the US
The Senate Intelligence Committee is investigating events that are believed to have targeted US spies and diplomats.
Scientists are skeptical that "Havana syndrome" is anything more than a psychogenic illness
Reports of a so-called "sonic weapon" causing illness in diplomats has little physical basis, say doctors.
Scientists suggest US embassies were hit with high-power microwaves – here’s how the weapons work
The mystery ailment that has afflicted U.S. embassy staff and CIA officers off and on over the last four years in Cuba, China, Russia and other countries appears to have been caused by high-power microwaves, according to a report released by the National Academies.
The Microwave Weapons That Could Explain Why ‘Havana Syndrome’ Report Is Not Being Released
Some have dismissed the incidents as psychogenic illness, what used to be called mass hysteria; the only noises that can be recorded are local insects. However, extensive brain scans of the victims found signs of injury, described as “a new syndrome….that resembles persistent concussion” in a paper in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2018.
‘Havana syndrome’ symptoms of diplomats in Cuba are not mass hysteria
It is a disservice to the men and women of the United States and Canadian diplomatic services to suggest they are suffering from a “mass psychogenic illness” arising from their tenure in Havana.
The Mystery of ‘Havana Syndrome’
So far, despite many efforts to explain the “anomalous health incidents” — the bureaucratese assigned to the phenomenon by the government, scientists and investigative journalists — no one has come up with anything conclusive.

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