Topline The
Pentagon told reporters Monday a senior official with the Department of Defense who attended a
NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, last year experienced symptoms similar to those reported by government officials who have experienced Havana Syndrome —a strange cognitive illness characterized by headaches, nausea and ear pain. The Pentagon addressed the report during a press breifing Monday. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu ... [+] Agency via Getty Images) Key Facts Responding to a bombshell report Sunday night about the origins of Havana Syndrome and its potential links to Russia, deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Monday that a senior defense official experienced symptoms similar to those reported in “anomalous health incidents”—another term for Havana Syndrome characterized by symptoms such as dizziness, ear pain, headaches and more. Singh fielded questions about the joint report from “60 Minutes,” The Insider, and Der Spiegel, which said a senior defense official was hit with Havana Syndrome symptoms as recently as July 2023, during a NATO summit in Lithuania focused on supporting
Ukraine in its war against Russia. The defense official who fell ill was not part of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s traveling delegation to the NATO summit, according to Singh, who did not name the official and directed questions about Russia’s potential role in the attack to the intelligence community, which is still investigating Havana Syndrome. It is unclear if the official has returned to work since their symptoms started. Key Background The joint report delves into instances in the last several years where U.S. officials have suffered from Havana Syndrome and suggests such incidents may be linked to the use of non-lethal acoustic weapons tested by
Russian GRU Unit 29155, a Russian assassination unit, citing documents, data and interviews with experts and unnamed former and present U.S. officials. Havana Syndrome gets its name from an incident in 2016 when officials at the U.S. embassy in Havana, Cuba, reported problems with their hearing, vision and balance. Medical scans later revealed some of the officials experienced lasting brain tissue damage. U.S. personnel in Austria ,
China , Georgia ,
Germany ,
India ,
Russia , Taiwan and Vietnam also reported similar experiences at later dates. Further Reading Unraveling Havana Syndrome: New evidence links the GRU's assassination Unit 29155 to mysterious attacks on U.S. officials and their families (The Insider) Havana Syndrome mystery continues as a lead
MILITARY investigator says bar for proof was set impossibly high (CBS) ‘Havana Syndrome’ Likely Wasn’t Caused By Foreign Adversary, Intelligence Report Finds (Forbes)