Victims of the so-called “Havana Syndrome” are expected to draw six-figure payments from the government.
According to the Washington Post, the Biden administration is preparing to compensate U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers who suffered from “Anomalous Health Incidents” while abroad. The mysterious ailments, widely known as Havana Syndrome, were first reported among officials who were working in Cuba’s capital in 2016. Those affected claimed they experienced a wide range of symptoms, including nausea, memory lapses, migraines, and dizziness.
Since then, hundreds of U.S. spies and government employees have reported similar experiences during their travels to Cuba, India, and China, as well as a number of European and Latin American countries. Medical experts have failed to determine the exact cause of the symptoms, but some officials say they believe it’s a result of energy attacks carried out through microwave technology. A State Department official pushed back on that theory in a 2021 statement to NBC News.
“It’s confounding and puzzling to everyone who works on this that we have not been able to determine the cause or attribution,” the official said. “’Attacks’ implies that we know what has happened and what is causing this and implies there’s a state actor. Obviously, that’s the theory that people have that’s not been ruled in or ruled out.”
In 2021, Biden signed a bill that authorized a government program that would compensate some Havana Syndrome victims. Sources told the Post the payments will go toward U.S. personnel who have experienced the most severe setbacks, including “job loss or career derailment.” Those individuals are expected to receive anywhere between $100,000 to $200,000.
The State Department reportedly plans to release the compensation plan in the upcoming days.
