House Intelligence Chair Calls for Retract of Havana Syndrome Report

In Washington, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee is urging the U.S. Intelligence Community to pull back a controversial report from 2023 that determined Havana syndrome wasn’t caused by attacks on U.S. military personnel.

Rick Crawford, the chair and a representative from Arkansas, has raised doubts about the reliability of the Intelligence Community Assessment, suggesting it has serious methodological flaws.

“The ICA is critically important, especially when it’s made public, as with the AHI [Anomalous Health Incidents] ICA,” Crawford shared on X. He added that the flawed document has done significant harm to some of the nation’s most courageous individuals.

Havana syndrome symptoms can differ widely among people but often include ear pain, memory loss, fatigue, migraines, dizziness, cognitive issues, and hearing loss.

This condition has also impacted U.S. intelligence and diplomatic staff stationed abroad. Many victims report hearing a high-pitched sound just before symptoms emerge, although this isn’t universal.

Critics have speculated that the sound could actually be crickets.

However, a recent report from independent journalist Sasha Ingber claims that the Pentagon has been testing a device that could potentially be linked to Havana syndrome. The jury is still out on whether this device is genuinely the source of the issue.

In an interview last week, former President Trump hinted that the military might have utilized similar technology during the operation to apprehend Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

“Discombobulator. We’re not allowed to talk about it,” he remarked, adding that “enemy equipment does not function.”

Crawford’s push for a retraction follows the passing of Mike Beck, a former NSA counterintelligence officer who had to retire in 2016 due to a rare form of Parkinson’s disease.

Beck had previously presented evidence suggesting he might have fallen victim to a kind of microwave weapon, a stance shared by numerous government officials.

“I am truly saddened by Mike Beck’s passing,” Crawford said, noting his team had worked closely with Beck’s family on various matters pertaining to his treatment.

“The response from the IC regarding abnormal health incidents is flawed and has not served our brave servicemen and women adequately. We need to amend how we’ve treated these individuals,” he added.

After years of complaints regarding Havana syndrome, the IC published a declassified section of a report in March 2023, concluding there was no substantial evidence to support the report’s findings.

“Most IC agencies determined that it is ‘very unlikely’ that a foreign adversary played a role in the reported Havana syndrome cases,” the report declared.

Yet, some organizations back the claims made by individuals like Beck. A December 2020 report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine suggested the symptoms were likely due to “directed pulsed radiofrequency energy.”

Crawford led a study by his committee’s subcommittee on the CIA but criticized the final report for lacking a necessary level of detail and thoroughness.

Since then, his team has conducted a significant number of interviews and meetings with senior officials from the Trump administration, and they have also sent a criminal referral regarding related issues.

“We won’t rest until all the concerns highlighted by the investigation are adequately addressed,” Crawford asserted.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has also criticized the government’s past approach to Havana syndrome, pledging to continue the investigation.