Mysterious Havana Syndrome Not a Foreign Attack: CIA

Sharing interim findings of an investigation into strange illnesses among US diplomats and intelligence officials, the CIA says it’s unlikely that they are the result of directed energy or other weapon levied by an adversary.

| 2 min read
Sign on front of a US embassy reads Embassy of the United States of America

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, TEKA77

Over the last few years, more than 1,000 US government personnel have reported largely unexplained symptoms including dizziness, nausea, tinnitus, and headaches. According to a new interim report from the CIA, most cases of so-called Havana syndrome can be attributed to preexisting medical conditions or environmental or other factors, and not to an unidentified foreign attack on US government personnel. Multiple news outlets cite those findings based on comments from an anonymous CIA officer. But the idea that Russia, Cuba, or another country has a hand in the mysterious ailment is not off the table, as the CIA, as well as the Pentagon, and the FBI, other agencies continue to investigate these incidents.

“While we have reached some significant interim findings, we are not done,” CIA Director William Burns says in a statement, multiple outlets report. “We will continue the mission to investigate these incidents and ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Keywords

Meet the Author

  • Jef Akst

    Jef Akst was managing editor of The Scientist, where she started as an intern in 2009 after receiving a master’s degree from Indiana University in April 2009 studying the mating behavior of seahorses.
Share
3D illustration of a gold lipid nanoparticle with pink nucleic acid inside of it. Purple and teal spikes stick out from the lipid bilayer representing polyethylene glycol.
February 2025, Issue 1

A Nanoparticle Delivery System for Gene Therapy

A reimagined lipid vehicle for nucleic acids could overcome the limitations of current vectors.

View this Issue
Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Lonza
An illustration of animal and tree silhouettes.

From Water Bears to Grizzly Bears: Unusual Animal Models

Taconic Biosciences
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo
New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

Sino

Products

Tecan Logo

Tecan introduces Veya: bringing digital, scalable automation to labs worldwide

Explore a Concise Guide to Optimizing Viral Transduction

A Visual Guide to Lentiviral Gene Delivery

Takara Bio
Inventia Life Science

Inventia Life Science Launches RASTRUM™ Allegro to Revolutionize High-Throughput 3D Cell Culture for Drug Discovery and Disease Research

An illustration of differently shaped viruses.

Detecting Novel Viruses Using a Comprehensive Enrichment Panel

Twist Bio