The mysterious “Havana syndrome” could have been caused by Russia, according to an investigation carried out by several media outlets. Moscow disputes. These ailments, which affected American diplomats stationed in Cuba in 2016, could have been caused by a Russian sonic weapon.
The mysterious Havana syndromesuffered for several years by dozens of American diplomats, is linked to a Russian intelligence unit, according to an international investigation by several media published Monday.
As of 2016, American and Canadian diplomats stationed in Cuba have saidbe troublednamely migraines, dizziness, nausea, vision problems, etc. These “abnormal health incidents”, according to the terminology used in the United States, were then reported elsewhere in the world (China, Germany, Australia, Russia, Austria) and even in Washington.
From the start, the affair led to widespread speculation about its origin. Some US officials initially downplayed the symptoms sometimes attributed to stress, with others privately speaking of possible attacks and already suspecting countries like Russia. American intelligence estimated in March 2023 “very unlikely” that a foreign power or a weapon was at the origin of the mysterious disorder.
But according to an investigation published by the independent Russian newspaper The Insider, the magazine anglais Der Spiegel and the American channel CBS, these diplomats were able to be the target of a Russian sonic weapon. The investigation, which lasted more than a year, said it had “discovered elements suggesting that these abnormal health incidents (…) could come from the use of directed energy weapons, wielded by members of the unit 29155 » of the GRU, Russian military intelligence service. Unit 29155 is responsible for operations abroad and has already found itself at the center of several cases, notably accused of the attempted poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in the United Kingdom in 2018.
Moscow to rejected Monday this investigation as “unfounded”.
The investigation by the three media suggests that the first cases of Havana syndrome occurred in Germany two years before those reported in Cuba in 2016. In Frankfurt, an employee at the United States consulate lost consciousness due to this which would be likened to a “strong ray of energy”.
