Merged US may close Cuba Embassy over 'health attacks'

[Gord_in_Toronto]

Don't forget the Canadians, who, for some reason, are still 'attacked' exclusively in Cuba and not all over the world, which is kind of appropriate for something called the Havana syndrome.

I guess the rest of the world is lacking in properly trained physiotherapists who can recognize injuries caused by directed energy weapons.

 

[dann]

The State Department no longer seems to think that there is any imminent threat to US embassy employees from directed microwave weapons, supersonic blasters or crickets in Havana:

The U.S. State Department is allowing diplomats in its embassy in Havana to be accompanied by some adult family members, in a first step towards fulfilling President Joe Biden’s promise to increase the personnel at the embassy in Havana and eventually resume consular services.

“President Biden has committed to restaffing our embassy in Havana to enhance our ability to engage with civil society and, at the appropriate time, to increase consular services to Cubans, while ensuring the safety of U.S. diplomats serving in Cuba,” a State Department spokesperson said. “This is one step in that process.”

The agency changed the status of the embassy on Aug. 16 from “unaccompanied” to “partially accompanied.”
Biden administration takes first step to increase staffing at the embassy in Havana (Miami Herald, Sep. 3, 2021)

However, there is still this limitation: Not safe for children! Adults only!

Children are still not allowed to return to the U.S. Embassy, suggesting there are still doubts about how secure the post is.

I haven't seen any mention of this in Cuban media yet.

 

[dann]

Health Complaints during Sojourns in Havana of Foreign Government Employees

Cuba has issued its most detailed report to date from prominent local scientists criticizing allegations that US and Canadian diplomats were subject to mysterious attacks while posted on the island and developed health problems.
The report by the 20-member panel from Cuba’s Academy of Sciences questioned whether the variety of reported symptoms could even be referred to as a single syndrome and said that some of the proposed explanations violated basic laws of physics.
But they acknowledged – and expressed frustration – that they had not been able to examine much of the evidence cited by US researchers.
(...)
The report said the only explanation so far that cannot be dismissed is the possibility of psychological suggestion leading to symptoms.
The authors included neuroscientists, physicists, psychologists and otorhinologists.
Cuban scientists say ‘Havana Syndrome’ theories ‘violate laws of physics’ (The Guardian, Sep 14, 2021)

A panel of Cuban scientists has rejected Washington's claims of American spies and diplomats overseas coming down with a mysterious illness known as "Havana Syndrome", saying the allegations are “not scientifically acceptable.”
The illness, which has come to be known as “Havana Syndrome”, was first reported by American diplomats in Cuba in 2016. US politicians, researchers and pundits have speculated that the mysterious condition was caused by electronic weapons.
The Cuban scientists on Monday said there was "no scientific evidence of attacks" of this nature on Cuban territory.
"We conclude that the narrative of the 'mysterious syndrome' is not scientifically acceptable in any of its components," the panel said in a report published on state-run website Cubadebate.
Scientifically unacceptable: Cuban experts refute US claims of 'Havana Syndrome' (PressTV, Sep 14, 2021)

Cuban scientists reject 'Havana Syndrome' claims (France24, Sep 13, 2021)

Spanish: Al descubierto las falsedades sobre el síndrome que inventó Washington (Granma.cu, Sep 13, 2021)

German: Die Unwahrheiten über das von Washington erfundene Syndrom aufgedeckt (Granma.cu, Sep 14, 2021)

The report in English: An Assessment of the Health Complaints during Sojourns in Havana of Foreign Government Employees and their Families (PDF 4,5 Mb)

 

[Planigale]

The State Department no longer seems to think that there is any imminent threat to US embassy employees from directed microwave weapons, supersonic blasters or crickets in Havana:




However, there is still this limitation: Not safe for children! Adults only!



I haven't seen any mention of this in Cuban media yet.

Slightly odd, even the wicked communists haven't been targeting children with their microwave weapons, so I would have thought it was safe for children.

 

[dann]

You know, we only use microwaves on children when we cook them.

I remember a story from when the 'Havana Syndrome' began (can it be called a pandemic now that it's everywhere?!) about a child with nosebleed and a toddler who fell a lot, but since the USA is very secretive about the data, I have no idea if any of them still have symptoms of anything.
Toddlers falling and children with nosebleed aren't exactly rare, so those microwaves must be everywhere.

Overview
Nosebleeds are common. They may be scary, but they rarely indicate a serious medical problem. The nose contains many blood vessels, which are located close to the surface in the front and back of the nose. They’re very fragile and bleed easily. Nosebleeds are common in adults and children between the ages of 3 and 10.
What Causes Nosebleeds and How to Treat Them (Healthline)

There was a dog, too, but it was put down.

 

[dann]

Long BBC article:

The Biden administration has signalled it is taking the issue seriously. CIA and State Department officials are given advice on how to respond to incidents (including 'getting off the X' - meaning physically moving from a spot if they feel they are getting hit). The State Department has set up a task force to support staff over what are now called "unexplained health incidents". Previous attempts to categorise cases as to whether they met specific criteria have been abandoned. But without a definition, it becomes harder to count.
(...)
 The debate remains divisive and it is possible the answer is complex. There may be a core of real cases, while others have been folded into the syndrome. Officials raise the possibility that the technology and the intent might have changed over time, perhaps shifting to try and unsettle the US. Some even worry one state may have piggy-backed on another's activities. "We like a simple label diagnosis," argues Professor Relman. "But sometimes it is tough to achieve. And when we can't, we have to be very careful not to simply throw up our hands and walk away."
The mystery of Havana syndrome could be its real power. The ambiguity and fear it spreads act as a multiplier, making more and more people wonder if they are suffering, and making it harder for spies and diplomats to operate overseas. Even if it began as a tightly defined incident, Havana syndrome may have developed a life of its own.
‘Havana syndrome ’ and the mystery of the microwaves (BBC, Sep 9, 2021)

So no real category, no real diagnosis, but a lot of cases of something that "have been folded into to the syndrome", which I assume means that they have been interpreted as being a part of this alleged syndrome without specific criteria. That really makes for a fear-spreading mystery and requires a very complex conspiracy theory to explain its origins.

 

[dann]

Slightly odd, even the wicked communists haven't been targeting children with their microwave weapons, so I would have thought it was safe for children.

I forgot to mention another symptom of 'Havana Syndrome' in children, but I was reminded by an article in the New York Times yesterday: The symptom is crying! If you hear a toddler cry, move away from the area immediately. You may both be under attack!

That includes one case, in the fall of 2020, when a military officer serving overseas pulled his vehicle into an intersection, then was overcome by nausea and headaches. His 2-year-old son, sitting in the back seat, began crying. When the officer quickly pulled away from the intersection, his nausea stopped and the child stopped crying, a chain of events that helped solidify the military advice that troops move out of the contact area as quickly as possible.
Pentagon Asks Personnel to Report Any Symptoms or Mysterious Ailments (NYT, Sep 15, 2021)

Man, it can't get more mysterious than this, can it?!

The downside is that you have to take the toddler with you. Remember that your nausea and headaches are not caused by the crying toddler. They are caused by a directed microwave weapon yielded by enemy combatants.
You will have to explain this very carefully to the police and the toddler's parents, who are bound to misunderstand the incident: This was a heroic rescue. It was not an abduction!

 

[dann]

The Pentagon asked personnel who have experienced Havana Syndrome symptoms to come forward.
It sent the message to 2.9 million service members and contractors, the New York Times reported.
More than 200 Americans around the world have been infected, and its cause remains a mystery.
The Pentagon is asking 2.9 million service members and contractors to come forward if they have symptoms of the mysterious 'Havana Syndrome' (Business Insider, Sep 16, 2021)

The memo, along with other documents provided to military counterintelligence officials, lays out suspected signs of the attacks from accounts of the injured, including heat, pressure and noise. It also details symptoms associated with the so-called Havana syndrome such as nausea, headaches, pain and vertigo.
Crucially, defense officials emphasized, the memo, which was sent to 2.9 million military service members and Defense Department civilians, outlines how to respond: Quickly move away from the area.
(...)
“We’re going to figure it out,” he added.
(...)
There are various reasons the United States has struggled to identify who, and what, is responsible for the episodes. Officials have considered that intelligence services from multiple countries could be involved, each with varying motives and equipment causing the illnesses, according to some U.S. officials.
Officials stress that the possibility of multiple adversaries remains only a theory, and that intelligence officials have yet to draw hard conclusions.
(...)
“I don’t think we can exclude any possibility here, that there are multiple causes of these injuries and that there are multiple players involved in these injuries,” Mr. Schiff said. “I think any of that is feasible.”
Pentagon Asks Personnel to Report Any Symptoms or Mysterious Ailments (NYT, Sep 15, 2021)

It will be interesting to find out how many of 2.9 million people experience "heat, pressure and noise" and/or "nausea, headaches, pain and vertigo."
After almost five years now, no cause and no potential perpetrator is beyond suspicion!
I am happy that I left out very few options back in 2017: Alien Attack? Mass Hysteria? Conspiracy? After all, anything is feasible, according to Schiff. For a long time, I thought that mass hysteria/mass psychogenic illness was the most likely answer, but with the multiple causes and players mentioned by Schiff, we can no longer rule out anything:

This is indeed the greatest conspiracy ever imagined!

 

[dann]

Once limited in range, mass hysteria can now spread across the globe in an instant

Directed energy weapons shoot painful but non-lethal beams – are similar weapons behind the Havana syndrome? (The Conversation, Sep 17, 2021)

The answer is no, of course not, but not according to the author of the piece.
The most interesting thing about it is how people defending the idea manage to make it look more improbable.

If the source of Havana syndrome turns out to be electromagnetic waves, then in principle, buildings could be hardened against them. However, it would be expensive and would still leave people vulnerable outdoors. Perhaps the best option to prevent further attack is detection. It is relatively simple and inexpensive to install sensors to detect electromagnetic waves on buildings and vehicles. Such sensors could also help identify the location of the source of the attacks and, in this way, act as a deterrent.

Almost five years after the first alleged attacks (counting only from the beginning of the 'Havana Syndrome' and not similar 'cases' from as far back as the 1990s), we are supposed to believe that all embassies and dwellings of CIA agents haven't already been equipped with these "relatively simple and inexpensive sensors". That not a single "location of the source of the attacks" has been found is obvious, since that would immediately have put a stop to the embarrassing lack of evidence for the idea.

It is much like the lack of evidence for alien abductions: Why did they stop when everybody started bringing a camera wherever they go? Why is the 'Havana Syndrome' still a (no)thing when it is so easy to detect the alleged attacks?


And now that Pentagon urges all employees to report symptoms of ‘Havana syndrome’ (Military Times, Sep 16, 2021), it might be a good idea to show "all employees" exactly what it looks like when people are attacked by directed microwave energy weapons. The article in The Conversation has a good photo for those in need of inspiration!

But the best way to spread mass hysteria appears to be by means of YouTube or Tik Tok videos. It worked so well for the most recent wave!
They saw a YouTube video. Then they got Tourettes. (Wired.co.uk, sep 1, 2021)
TikTok tics: when Tourette’s syndrome went viral (BigThink, Sep 10, 2021)
TikTok Tourette's: Social Media Spreading Mass Illness (RealClearScience, Sep 12, 2021)

 

[dann]

Great title!

On 17 February, 2017, the then-US chargé d'affaires in Havana sent a complaint to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) about alleged "attacks" against his staff, which had theoretically occurred since November of the previous year. There was no talk at that time of diseases or symptoms. Immediately, Cuban experts began to investigate, without ever questioning why the information was not shared with them from day one.

When the press reports of that time are reviewed, it can be seen that the information about the alleged attacks was disseminated to the American public through specific journalists and media outlets; the rest only echoed without asking uncomfortable questions or questioning the official story. Cuban officials located and spoke with the directors of these media outlets, who could never deny that their journalists were being used by unidentified sources from the US Government, who created more confusion without seeking an explanation. Nor could they justify the periodic reiteration of the issue, despite there being nothing new to report.

In this report, Dr José Rodríguez takes a look at the controversial phenomenon dubbed the "Havana Syndrome".
Havana Syndrome or Washington Syndrome? (Middle-East Monitor, Sep 15, 2020)

 

[dann]

Still spreading ...

I think I missed this one back in May. Interesting that CIA agents abroad weren't vaccinated as soon as their colleagues in the USA. Since brain fog is one of the symptoms of both long Covid and 'Havana syndrome', it will be interesting to see how it will be interpreted when people report it as they have been encouraged to do.

U.S. GOVERNMENT SUSPICIONS about microwave weapon attacks have apparently spread to the Department of Homeland Security, the nation’s largest federal law enforcement body encompassing agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as U.S. Customs and Border Protection, according to an internal DHS memo obtained exclusively by The Intercept.
(...)
The author of “Imaginary Weapons: A Journey Through the Pentagon’s Scientific Underworld,” Weinberger is an expert on directed energy weapons and has argued that known microwave weapons are far too large to operate covertly and unable to penetrate walls.
Talks with retired CIA officials have revealed a deficit of trust between personnel and the agency’s Office of Medical Services. As The Intercept reported earlier this year, CIA headquarters received vaccines for Covid-19 as soon as they were available in early January, while officers working overseas had to wait for months, to the consternation of many. That distrust, while understandable, can lead personnel to seek out their own answers in the absence of any scientific consensus.
MICROWAVE WEAPON CONCERNS SPREAD TO DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (The Intercept, May 28, 2021)

 

[Butter!]

Directed energy weapons shoot painful but non-lethal beams – are similar weapons behind the Havana syndrome? (The Conversation, Sep 17, 2021)

The answer is no, of course not, but not according to the author of the piece.
The most interesting thing about it is how people defending the idea manage to make it look more improbable.




Almost five years after the first alleged attacks (counting only from the beginning of the 'Havana Syndrome' and not similar 'cases' from as far back as the 1990s), we are supposed to believe that all embassies and dwellings of CIA agents haven't already been equipped with these "relatively simple and inexpensive sensors". That not a single "location of the source of the attacks" has been found is obvious, since that would immediately have put a stop to the embarrassing lack of evidence for the idea.

It is much like the lack of evidence for alien abductions: Why did they stop when everybody started bringing a camera wherever they go? Why is the 'Havana Syndrome' still a (no)thing when it is so easy to detect the alleged attacks?


And now that Pentagon urges all employees to report symptoms of ‘Havana syndrome’ (Military Times, Sep 16, 2021), it might be a good idea to show "all employees" exactly what it looks like when people are attacked by directed microwave energy weapons. The article in The Conversation has a good photo for those in need of inspiration!

But the best way to spread mass hysteria appears to be by means of YouTube or Tik Tok videos. It worked so well for the most recent wave!
They saw a YouTube video. Then they got Tourettes. (Wired.co.uk, sep 1, 2021)
TikTok tics: when Tourette’s syndrome went viral (BigThink, Sep 10, 2021)
TikTok Tourette's: Social Media Spreading Mass Illness (RealClearScience, Sep 12, 2021)

I am legitimately convinced at this point that Tik Tok is a ******* psy-op.

 

[TurkeysGhost]

Was at a wedding this weekend and one of my fellow guests was experiencing havana syndrome after closing out the bar at 2am and missed the brunch.

 

[Planigale]

I am legitimately convinced at this point that Tik Tok is a ******* psy-op.

Is that your (hysterical) Tourette's coming out?

 

[dann]

SkepticGinger was the first to point out that Tik Tok was going to become the next big online phenomenon. I had never heard about it when she posted her prediction, and I seriously doubted it, but it has has obviously come true.

When the HPV-vaccine hysteria spread in Denmark, it started with online discussions among the girls, but it really took off when the program De vaccinerede piger (The Vaccinated Girls) aired on TV2 in March 2015. It was very impressive to see a young woman whose whole body was twitching so much that she couldn't even walk.

If the CIA and the State Department seriously want this mass psychogenic illness to spread, we need to see video clips of those 'Havana-Syndrome' victims on both Tik Tok and YouTube. It is difficult to emulate the symptoms when you don't know what they look like.

Show us the crying and falling toddlers, show us the nauseous and dizzy adults!
Inquiring minds need to know!

 

[Gord_in_Toronto]

Continues to spread!!

C.I.A. Officer Suffers Havana Syndrome Symptoms

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/20/us/politics/cia-officer-suffers-havana-syndrome-symptoms.html

The officer, who had been traveling in India with the agency’s director, was given medical attention after an unexplained incident triggered injuries.

Is there no place to hide from these evil rays?

 

[dann]

I am a little disappointed that not even Mr. Burns and his bodyguard have microwave detectors! When they came up with the WMD scam as an excuse to wage war on Iraq, they could at least point at a "shipment of aluminum tubes." So far, I don't remember hearing about physical evidence of anything, unless we count the recordings of crickets.

A US intelligence officer suffered symptoms linked to a series of suspected directed-energy attacks known as “Havana syndrome” while traveling with the CIA director, William Burns, in India this month.
(...)
It’s unclear whether the officer was targeted because he was traveling with Burns, who has ordered an agency-wide review of possible attacks using microwave or other directed energy.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/21/havana-syndrome-cia-officer-india (The Guardian, Sep 21, 2021)

And why go for some low-level official when they could get the guy in charge of the whole operation?

When CIA Director Bill Burns traveled to India earlier this month a member of his team reported symptoms consistent with Havana syndrome and had to receive medical attention, according to three sources familiar with the matter.
The incident set off alarm bells within the US government and left Burns "fuming" with anger, one source explained. Some officials at the CIA viewed the chilling episode as a direct message to Burns that no one is safe, including those working directly for the nation's top spy, two sources said.
(...)
The situation in India could have dramatic implications: the CIA director's schedule is tightly held and there are deep concerns among US officials about how the perpetrator would have known about the visit and been able to plan for such an aggression.
Member of CIA chief's team reported Havana syndrome symptoms on recent trip to India (CNN, Sep 21, 2021)

Which perpetrator? Got a name or a photo or something?
Since Burns was so close to the new case, how can they be sure that it was merely anger that made him fume?

It was first reported by officials stationed at the US embassy in Cuba in 2016. The first cases were CIA officers, which meant they were kept secret. But eventually word got out and anxiety spread.
Twenty-six personnel and family members would report a wide variety of symptoms. There were whispers that some colleagues thought sufferers were crazy and it was "all in the mind".
Five years on, reports now number in the hundreds and, the BBC has been told, span every continent, leaving a real impact on the US's ability to operate overseas.
CIA Officer Suffers Havan Syndrome Symptoms on India Trip: What We Know about It (India Times, Sep 21, 2021)

I don't know about "span every continent". I am pretty sure that I haven't heard about any cases in Antartica, but you never know what those penguins are up to. I also don't remember any in Oceania, but there are so many now that it may have slipped my mind.

Earlier this month, a panel of Cuban scientists, which also investigated the events of 2016, said that there was “no scientific evidence of attacks” against the US diplomats in Havana. The “non-science-based” explanations of the phenomenon disseminated by the media only confuse the public and “harm US officials, who believe them,” it insisted.
CIA officer suffers 'Havana syndrome' symptoms on India trip – reports (RT, Sep 21, 2021)

At least, they can't claim that they haven't been warned.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

SkepticGinger was the first to point out that Tik Tok was going to become the next big online phenomenon. I had never heard about it when she posted her prediction, and I seriously doubted it, but it has has obviously come true.

People even argued with me after the developers became rich.

When the HPV-vaccine hysteria spread in Denmark, it started with online discussions among the girls, but it really took off when the program De vaccinerede piger (The Vaccinated Girls) aired on TV2 in March 2015. It was very impressive to see a young woman whose whole body was twitching so much that she couldn't even walk.

I vaguely remember that ****.

There was also toxic mold syndrome and sick building syndrome. I haven't found a good article comparing those with Havana syndrome but they are very similar.

With the mold they tore whole buildings down and lawsuits have been won. But it's really as nebulous as Havana syndrome. Once people go down this mass hysteria rabbit hole believers continue to fall in after them.

 

[Gord_in_Toronto]

Somebody had better do something!

In tense Blinken meeting, ‘Havana Syndrome’ diplomats complain of skepticism

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/na...ndrome-diplomats-complain-skepticism-n1279769

WASHINGTON – U.S. diplomats suffering from the unexplained “Havana Syndrome” used a tense meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken this month to voice growing dismay over continuing stigma and disbelief within the U.S. government about their injuries, more than four years after the incidents began.

In his first meeting with the cohort of State Department staffers affected in Cuba and China, Blinken spent more than an hour offering reassurances and fielding questions, with most affected staffers joining remotely by phone. His message: Those suffering must be believed, and that the administration is doing all it can to investigate and provide care.

Yet, the assurance from America’s top diplomat stood in stark contrast to the profound challenges that affected diplomats say they’re still facing in getting proper medical care, evaluation and benefits — and the skepticism about their injuries they say is pervasive even among some high-level government officials.

 

[dann]

I vaguely remember that ****.

I was at a Copenhagen-Skeptics-in-the-Pub meeting with the MD in charge of the allegedly HPV-vaccine-damaged girls, Jesper Mehlsen, as the speaker. Many of the girls were there, too.
He was already then about to retire. He was obviously a very competent guy in his field of expertise, and the girls had a lot of confidence in him because he didn't simply dismiss their symptoms and had them all undergo meticulous medical examinations, but the problem was that he stuck to an obsolete idea of what constitutes mass psychogenic illness.

Like some of the posters in this thread, he insisted on the old-fashioned definition of community. He insisted that the HPV-vaccine scare couldn't have been caused by rumors spread among the girls since they came from all parts of the country, and thus he missed the point that communities now exist online thanks to social media. A journalist discovered that the girls had shared thoughts and ideas on a website for young girls interested in horses.

One good thing that came out of the medical investigation was a focus on ME and mitochondrial disorders, which some of the girls suffered from. It just wasn't related to the HPV vaccinations.
I don't think Mehlsen ever gave up on the idea that the girls' symptoms were caused by the vaccine, and unfortunately he appears to have started attending conferences for vaccine skeptics even though he himself wasn't one and even said that if he had had a daughter, he wouldn't hesitate to have her get the HPV shots.