At least one official of the diplomatic mission in Paris and Geneva was evacuated to the United States for treatment after members of the mission were suspected to have been afflicted with a mysterious neurological condition known as the Havana syndrome.
Last summer, alleged attacks on U.S. officials working in two European cities were reported to officials and to the State Department in Washington, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. All diplomats joined some 200 other American diplomats who used to work in China, South America and Europe.
At least three Americans working at the consulate in Geneva, a city home to nearly a dozen major international organizations, are suspected of suffering from what the Biden administration called an "abnormal health incident." From the Geneva mission group, at least one diplomat was evacuated from Switzerland to the U.S. for medical observation and treatment. Those who remained in Geneva were informed by their leadership during a town hall meeting, while staff in Paris learned about the incidents through email. They have been urged to report unusual symptoms.
Last year, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Biden administration was "intently focused" on revealing the mystery behind reported cases and said that Havana syndrome has been causing profound physical and physiological harm to all the staff of the foreign mission since the first incident emerged in U.S. Embassy in Havana over five years ago.
The number of reported cases of possible attack is sharply growing and both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, as well as those believed to be affected, are demanding answers. But scientists and government officials aren’t yet certain about who might have been behind the attacks and if the symptoms could have been caused inadvertently by surveillance equipment – or if the incidents were actually attacks.
The problem has been labeled the "Havana Syndrome,” as the first few cases of it were discovered in 2016 at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba. At least 130 cases in the government are now under investigation, up from several dozen in 2020.
People who are believed to have been affected have reported headaches, dizziness and symptoms consistent with concussions, with some requiring months of medical treatment. Some have reported hearing a loud noise before the sudden onset of symptoms.
The recent cases of Havana syndrome in Geneva and Paris are the latest ones that occurred in Europe. Previously the incidents were reported in Austria, Serbia and Germany. The Wall Street Journal also reported nearly half a dozen recent incidents at the huge U.S. embassy complex in Bogota, Colombia. The consulates in China have also had suspicious cases.
U.S. President Joe Biden signed a law providing financial support for victims of the mysterious illness in October. The Havana Act provides financial compensation for members of the State Department and CIA who suffer brain injury from what officials suspect may be directed microwave attacks.
