Under the title "Mysterious Illness Strikes American Officials: Has It Come from China?", Al Arabiya reported that the U.S. government has decided to investigate a series of brain injuries that have mysteriously affected up to 130 Americans since 2016. Reports of long-term brain injuries have surfaced, including debilitating headaches among employees from the U.S. State Department, Department of Defense, and CIA who served abroad. Their injuries have raised widespread concern within President Joe Biden's administration, according to the New York Times.
The National Security Council noted that affected employees have experienced sensory phenomena, such as changes in hearing, pressure, or temperature, in addition to a range of physical symptoms including sudden dizziness, nausea, and pain in the head or neck. A definitive explanation for these mysterious illnesses, referred to as "Havana Syndrome," has not been found. The initial cases of injuries occurred at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba, but as reported cases have continued to rise, there has been increasing pressure from Congress to understand the cause behind the impact on numerous diplomats and other American officials, according to ABC News.
A spokesperson for the National Security Council confirmed that President Biden has launched a review to determine whether there are other unreported cases and whether these mysterious illnesses are spreading more widely. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated, "At this point, we do not know the cause of these incidents, which are considered limited in nature, the vast majority of which have been reported abroad," amidst reports that the CIA has formed a new task force to investigate the outbreak.
The New York Times mentioned that the initially confirmed cases were primarily concentrated in China and Cuba, with around 60 employees affected; however, current and former officials told the newspaper that more than 130 people have been impacted, including cases from Europe and elsewhere in Asia. Sources indicated that at least three CIA officers reported serious health effects from incidents abroad since December 2020, one of which occurred in the past two weeks, all of whom requested to undergo outpatient treatment at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
U.S. security officials have considered a range of potential explanations for the brain injuries, with some experts suggesting that the outbreak may be due to mass hysteria. However, a report released last December from a study conducted by the National Academy of Sciences indicated that the true culprit may be pulsed radiofrequency energy directed primarily, a form of targeted microwave weapon. According to the New York Times, some government officials agree that microwaves or directed energy devices are the most likely cause of the illness.
Nonetheless, experts have also considered exposure to chemicals, infectious diseases like Zika, and psychological issues, but they have failed to reach a definitive conclusion. China was reported to have deployed microwave weapons during skirmishes with India at its border in the Himalayas, where a live-fire agreement was established to prevent violent escalation.
In November of last year, the Chinese military employed high-energy electromagnetic radiation technology to turn strategically significant hilltops occupied by Indian soldiers into a microwave oven. Meanwhile, the CIA is investigating whether similar technology could have been used against embassy staff, and U.S. federal agencies are also looking into at least two possible incidents on U.S. soil, including an event that occurred near the White House in November 2020, according to CNN reports.
The CNN report added that the incidents appear similar to "covert attacks" on American individuals abroad and indicate that the possibility of a similar attack near the White House is particularly concerning. Some Pentagon officials believe that the Russian military intelligence agency may be behind various attacks over the past five years, a claim denied by Moscow. The report also revealed that the Biden administration is attempting to strike a delicate balance between demonstrating to officials that they take the matter seriously and trying to prevent the spread of panic, both within the government and among the public.
