The United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) concluded that in principle no foreign government is behind the so-called Havana syndrome, which is causing brain damage to diplomats and other American public officials in representations abroad.
“We assess that it is unlikely that a foreign actor, including Russia, is conducting a sustained worldwide campaign to harm US officials with any weapon or mechanism,” a senior CIA official told the Washington Post, on condition of anonymity.
However, the same official said the possibility remains that a foreign power is behind cases that cannot be explained by medical or other factors. Russia had been singled out as the prime suspect.
The episodes began at the US Embassy in Cuba in 2016 (which led to the creation of the term Havana Syndrome), where more than 40 employees suffered the debilitating neural symptoms that characterize the syndrome – severe headaches, loss of vision and hearing, vertigo. and brain damage – and had to leave the Cuban capital for treatment.
Then, US government investigators gathered information on more than 1,000 cases among intelligence, diplomatic and military officials registered on every continent except Antarctica.
A advocacy group for victims of Havana syndrome criticized the CIA’s conclusion. “The CIA’s newly released report may be labeled ‘provisional’ and leave the door open to some alternative explanation in some cases, but to dozens of dedicated public servants, their families and their colleagues, it has the semblance of some purpose and repudiation. ,” the group said in a statement.
The association added that the decision to release the report now and with this approach represents a “breach of trust” and gives the appearance of an attempt to “undermine” attempts to investigate the matter, but stressed that the conclusion is only the CIA and the assessment was not coordinated with other government agencies.
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