Department of State and the
Department of Defense spurred broad concern in the Biden administration.
Initially, there were only around 60 publicly confirmed cases, concentrated in China and Cuba. This did not include a group of injured CIA officers, whose total isn’t public.
The new total now includes cases from Europe as well as elsewhere in Asia. The expanded number reflects the administration’s efforts to more thoroughly review other incidents amid concern over a spate of them in recent months.
At least three CIA officers have reported serious health effects from episodes overseas since December, including one that happened within the past few weeks. All have been required to undergo outpatient treatment at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center or other facilities.
A second member of the National Security Council was struck by the mystery illness near an entrance to the White House grounds in November of last year, CNN reported on Monday.
In November 2016, shortly after the U.S. presidential election, undercover spies posing as diplomatic workers at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, began reporting hearing high-pitched sounds that were followed by hearing loss and odd sensations. Soon, other non-spy U.S. and Canadian diplomatic workers also reported hearing the sound and feeling odd or nauseous. When the Cuban government was questioned about this, the incidents subsided, but came back soon. Embassy workers sent back to the states have been diagnosed with brain damage attributed to the sounds, and various sonic weapons have been blamed – along with pesticides and other non-sonic causes.