Dec 7, 2020 04:43 AM
https://www.vox.com/2020/12/6/22156988/h...ons-report
INTRO: A new report from the National Academy of Sciences has found “directed” radio frequency energy to be the most plausible explanation for mysterious and debilitating neurological symptoms experienced by dozens of American diplomats and intelligence operatives in Cuba, China, and other countries starting in late 2016.
The State Department-commissioned report, reviewed by a number of journalists — including at NBC News and the New York Times — does not come to firm conclusions about the origins and nature of the affliction often referred to as “Havana syndrome,” but its account gives weight to theories that the illnesses are the results of deliberate attacks — which some members of the intelligence community suspect may have been carried out by Russia.
The symptoms suffered by those afflicted with Havana syndrome vary, but in reported cases, many experienced nausea, headaches, dizziness, and loss of hearing. These maladies were sometimes so severe and long-lasting that they caused officials to retire early.
As the New York Times explains, the language of the report suggests an intentional attack was behind the strange symptoms, and that they were caused by radio frequency energy — a kind of radiation that includes microwaves — since it describes the attacks as “directed” and “pulsed.” However, the report stated that the National Academy of Sciences “cannot rule out other possible mechanisms and considers it likely that a multiplicity of factors explains some cases and the differences between others.”
The report concludes that “the larger issue is preparedness for new and unknown threats that might compromise the health and safety of U.S. diplomats serving abroad,” and notes that future instances may be “even more difficult to recognize quickly,” at least in part because attacks could be spaced farther apart, or used in a more targeted manner... (MORE)
Related Scivillage threads:
INTRO: A new report from the National Academy of Sciences has found “directed” radio frequency energy to be the most plausible explanation for mysterious and debilitating neurological symptoms experienced by dozens of American diplomats and intelligence operatives in Cuba, China, and other countries starting in late 2016.
The State Department-commissioned report, reviewed by a number of journalists — including at NBC News and the New York Times — does not come to firm conclusions about the origins and nature of the affliction often referred to as “Havana syndrome,” but its account gives weight to theories that the illnesses are the results of deliberate attacks — which some members of the intelligence community suspect may have been carried out by Russia.
The symptoms suffered by those afflicted with Havana syndrome vary, but in reported cases, many experienced nausea, headaches, dizziness, and loss of hearing. These maladies were sometimes so severe and long-lasting that they caused officials to retire early.
As the New York Times explains, the language of the report suggests an intentional attack was behind the strange symptoms, and that they were caused by radio frequency energy — a kind of radiation that includes microwaves — since it describes the attacks as “directed” and “pulsed.” However, the report stated that the National Academy of Sciences “cannot rule out other possible mechanisms and considers it likely that a multiplicity of factors explains some cases and the differences between others.”
The report concludes that “the larger issue is preparedness for new and unknown threats that might compromise the health and safety of U.S. diplomats serving abroad,” and notes that future instances may be “even more difficult to recognize quickly,” at least in part because attacks could be spaced farther apart, or used in a more targeted manner... (MORE)
Related Scivillage threads: