Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new coordinator for the State Department’s investigation into Anomalous Health Incidents, formerly known as Havana Syndrome. The video above shows clips from Friday’s announcement. Jonathan Moore replaces Pamela Spratlen, a retired diplomat temporarily called back into service by Blinken before leaving in September.
“Jonathan brings decades of experience grappling with complex policy challenges,” Blinken said at Friday’s announcement. “Across each of his assignments, Jonathan has brought a strong analytical capacity and fidelity to the facts.
Several hundred cases of Anomalous Health Incidents are under investigation, with U.S. personnel around the world reporting more and more cases. People affected have reported headaches, dizziness, nausea, and other symptoms consistent with traumatic brain injuries.
“These incidents have left our colleagues with profound harm,” Blinken said. “They’ve experienced serious physical consequences, including persistent headaches and hearing loss. They’ve also experienced psychological harm, including trauma, anxiety, depression. They’ve been affected, their careers have been affected, their families and colleagues have been affected, too.”
In a step to take care of State Department officials affected by the former Havana Syndrome, Blinken also appointed retired ambassador Margaret Uyehara as senior care coordinator.
“Nothing is more important than the safety and security of our personnel, both overseas and domestically,” Uyehara said Friday. “We will continue to work tirelessly to provide the highest possible level of assistance, and to ensure that those who are injured are treated with the empathy and compassion that they so richly deserve.”
After years of investigation, the U.S. government has still not publicly identified what or who might be behind the incidents, if anyone. The incidents got the name “Havana Syndrome” after a series of reported brain injuries in 2016 at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba.
Writing for the Cipher Brief, a group of former CIA officers said they had “few doubts” that Russia was responsible. They said they expected the U.S. to eventually blame Moscow. The officers called for the U.S. to bolster its military presence in Eastern Europe, limit Russian business and tourist travel, and seek collective defense through NATO.
“For at least a decade, Russia has conducted itself as in a state of conflict with the West in general and the United States in particular,” the group said.