Microwave weapons were behind US diplomats’ ailments, says leading scientist

US embassy in CubaAdvanced weapons that emit microwave radiation were most likely responsible for the ailments of American diplomats in Cuba and China, according to the scientist leading the investigations into the matter. In September of 2017, Washington recalled the majority of its personnel from its embassy in Havana and issued a travel warning advising its citizens to stay away from the island. These actions were taken in response to allegations by the US Department of State that at least 21 of its diplomatic and support staff stationed in Cuba suffered from sudden and unexplained loss of hearing, causing them to be diagnosed with brain injuries. In April, the Canadian embassy evacuated all family members of its personnel stationed in Havana over similar health concerns.

Less than a year later, in June 2018, the US reportedly evacuated at least two more diplomatic personnel from its consulate in the Chinese city of Guangzhou, after they experienced “unusual acute auditory or sensory phenomena” and “unusual sounds or piercing noises”. The evacuations took place two weeks after the US Department of State disclosed that a consulate worker in Guangzhou had been flown home for medical testing, in response to having experienced “subtle and vague, but abnormal, sensations of sound and pressure”. The evacuations from China prompted comparisons to the very similar phenomena that had been reported by US diplomatic personnel in Cuba the previous year. In 2017, media reports stated that Washington had concluded that the American diplomats were exposed to “an advanced device that was deployed either inside or outside their residences”. But the Cuban government denied that it had anything to do with the American diplomats’ symptoms, and some believe that the alleged “covert sonic device” may have been deployed by an intelligence service of a third country —possibly Russia— without the knowledge of Cuban authorities. However, the US government has remained largely silent about the cases.

Now, however, Douglas H. Smith, the head of the team of scientists that were tasked by the US government to examine the matter, says that microwave radiation was almost certainly responsible for the diplomats’ ailments. Dr. Smith, who is also the lead author of a written account of the investigation that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, spoke to The New York Times. He said that microwaves were now considered “a main suspect” and that his team of scientists was now “increasingly sure” that the diplomats had suffered brain injuries caused by microwave radiation. The Times sought comments on Dr. Smith’s statement from the US Department of State and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. However, the Department of State said that its own investigation had yet to conclusively identify the cause of the ailments, while the FBI declined to discuss the matter.

Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 03 September 2018 | Permalink

3 Responses to Microwave weapons were behind US diplomats’ ailments, says leading scientist

  1. pvt says:

    how would this microwave weapon work? can microwaves be detected to find the source? how do they affect people – [are they ‘cooked’!?] is the damage permanent?

  2. intelNews says:

    @pvt: Here is the JAMA study, which is currently the only scientific study that is available on the case of the US diplomats’ ailments. [JF]

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