The panel came to the conclusion that “pulsed electromagnetic energy plausibly explains” a select few cases, but conceded that “information gaps exist.”
The findings did not identify any known device capable of pulsating electromagnetic energy at targets, but believes the technology to do so exists. The panel also concluded that the primary symptoms of the “Anomalous Health Incidents” (AHI) cannot be attributed to any known medical condition or psychological syndrome.
The panel’s executive summary stated that, “although some signs and symptoms of AHIs are common in known medical conditions, the combination of the four core characteristics is distinctly unusual and unreported elsewhere in the medical literature, and so far have not been associated with a specific neurological abnormality.”
Those deemed to have been attacked showed “cellular injury to the nervous system,” and their symptoms aligned with those who have suffered accidental exposure to microwaves.
The panel’s conclusions align with a longstanding suspicion that a foreign adversary is responsible for causing the symptoms of the Havana Syndrome in American officials and spies abroad.
The scope of attack is also believed to be much smaller than previously thought. Most of the suspected cases came from 2016 when US diplomats and spies in Cuba began to report abnormal sounds and sensations. The group then suffered symptoms with an unexplainable origin. Symptoms included hearing and vision impairment, memory and balance issues, headaches and nausea.
In the years since, close to 1,000 US government officials overseas reported Havana Syndrome symptoms, but a CIA investigation, and now this panel, have ruled that many of those had explainable origins not linked to microwave radiation.
US intelligence officials have long suspected Russia to be the culprit, but no credible evidence has materialized and Moscow has long denied the claims.
US Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) issued a statement on the panel's findings.
"I appreciate the work of the IC Experts Panel appointed by the DNI and Deputy Director of CIA to provide scientific and medical perspectives on the potential causes of the health incidents that have afflicted U.S. personnel."
Schiff added: "Though this and other recent IC efforts have helped to answer important questions we have these incidents, much more remains to be done - and must be."
On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced the appointment of an Anomalous Health Incidents (AHI) Interagency Coordinator who would continue to study the mysterious Havana Syndrome.
The White House National Security Council said the findings would, “inform intensive research and investigation moving forward as we continue our government-wide effort to get to the bottom of AHI.”
For some of the nearly 1,000 government officials who reported effects thought to be due to Havana Syndrome the panel stated that their symptoms, “could be due to hypervigilance and normal human reactions to stress and ambiguity, particularly among a workforce attuned to its surroundings and trained to think about security.”