CIA fires chief of staff at US embassy in Vienna, amid criticism of the way it handled alleged cases of the mysterious Havana Syndrome, The Washington Post wrote on Thursday.
According to the Post, dozens of US staff in the Austrian capital – diplomats and spies – as well as some children of US government employees showed symptoms, but the official treated their cases with skepticism or indifference.
A CIA spokesman who was questioned by Agence France-Presse declined to confirm or deny the newspaper’s information.
However, he assured that the service takes seriously the dozens of possible cases of the mysterious syndrome in US diplomatic missions around the world, especially in Vienna, where the US maintains a large embassy.
Mystery of Havana Syndrome: Rapid increase in unexplained cases
The Post, citing former and current US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, explained that the ousting was intended to send a message to officials and other officials that they should take Havana Syndrome seriously. , a series of unexplained health problems that include headaches, nausea, dizziness, memory loss, etc.
US Vice President Kamala Harris’s visit to Vietnam was delayed by several hours in late August due to an “unnatural health incident” at the US embassy in Hanoi, turning the spotlight back on the phenomenon, which Washington has not yet ruled out. .
When did the mysterious problems begin?
It all started when staff at the US embassy in Cuba reported mysterious health problems from 2016 onwards. But the case did not escalate until 2017, when then-US President Donald Trump recalled the largest member of US diplomats from Havana, reacting to the new threat.
More than twenty US government officials and members of their families showed symptoms of the syndrome from late 2016 to May 2018, as did some Canadian diplomats.
In 2018, similar symptoms were reported by about ten other US diplomats in China. Possible cases of the syndrome have also been reported in Germany, Australia, Russia, Taiwan and Washington itself.
In July, The New Yorker reported on more than ten cases of the syndrome in Vienna in 2021.
What are the unexplained symptoms?
Diplomats have several symptoms: lack of balance, coordination, dizziness, difficulty focusing their eyes, anxiety attacks, intense irritability and what the victims call “mental blur”. They have even been diagnosed with brain injuries.
Last year, a committee of the US National Academy of Sciences concluded that the most plausible theory is that Havana Syndrome is due to “directed radio waves”.
From the beginning, Washington seems to be hesitant. Some US officials downplay these symptoms, which are sometimes attributed to stress. But others are talking about possible attacks and suspect countries like Russia.
The latter includes the current director of the CIA, William Burns, who stated in July that about 100 CIA members and their families are among the approximately 200 US officials and their relatives suffering from Havana Syndrome and there is ” very likely “to be deliberate actions on Russia’s responsibility.
Moscow has denied any involvement.
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