The last time I wrote about Havana Syndrome was back in January of 2025. US Intelligence Agencies had officially determined in 2023 that Havana Syndrome was not the result of an attack by a state actor.
Five of those agencies determined it was “very unlikely” that a foreign adversary was responsible for the symptoms, either as the result of purposeful actions — such as a directed energy weapon — or as the byproduct of some other activity, including electronic surveillance that unintentionally could have made people sick, the officials said. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the findings of the assessment, which had not yet been made public…
The intelligence assessment also examined whether an adversary possessed a device capable of using energy to cause the reported symptoms. Of the seven agencies, five determined that it was “very unlikely,” while the other two said it was “unlikely.”
And yet, there was pretty strong evidence uncovered by several major news outlets that Havana Syndrome was the result of directed attacks carried out by Russia’s GRU. And in 2025, just as the Biden administration was leaving office, it updated the IC conclusions about a possible weapon.
Today, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released an update to the 2023 report. The intelligence agencies aren’t saying a foreign actor is to blame for Havana syndrome. But they are no longer so confident that one is not.
Two intelligence agencies have now “shifted their judgment to reflect a greater possibility” that a small number of cases indeed were “caused by a foreign actor,” an intelligence official told reporters in a briefing. The agencies have examined new information that “foreign actors”—he didn’t say which—“are making progress in scientific research and weapons development.”
It was pretty vague, but they were clearly suggesting that some people, behind the scenes, were changing their minds. And now it seems we know why.
According to a 60 Minutes report aired Sunday, we know the weapon is real because we purchased one from black market arms dealers in 2024 and we’ve been testing it for more than a year.
60 Minutes has learned U.S. agents who investigate illicit arms dealers heard that a Russian criminal network was selling a microwave weapon. Our sources tell us, undercover agents of the Department of Homeland Security bought the weapon in 2024. The mission cost about $15 million, funded by the Pentagon.
60 Minutes has learned details of a classified microwave weapon that may explain mysterious brain injuries suffered by U.S. officials. We’ve been investigating these injuries for nine years. And now, our sources tell us this microwave weapon is portable, concealable and uses relatively little power.
Three independent sources from different agencies tell us that undercover homeland security agents purchased a miniaturized microwave weapon from a complex Russian criminal network. It’s classified. We didn’t see it. But it has been described to us. We are told it doesn’t look anything like a gun. It is designed to be concealed and small enough to be carried by a person. It is silent and doesn’t create heat like a microwave oven. Our sources say the device is programmable for different scenarios and can be operated by remote control. The range of the beam is several hundred feet. It can penetrate windows and drywall. The vital components were made in Russia. Our sources say the key is not the hardware but the software. The programming shapes a unique, electromagnetic wave that rises and falls abruptly and pulses rapidly.
All of that seems to match with reports that Russia’s GRU was behind this. But the real kicker is something else that US intel has come up with: Videos showing people being “hit” by the device. One of the videos apparently even shows the person using the device.
Our confidential sources tell us the still classified weapon has been tested in a U.S. military lab for more than a year. Tests on rats and sheep show injuries consistent with those seen in humans. Also, as a separate part of the investigation, security camera videos have been collected that show Americans being hit. The videos are classified but they were described to us. In one, a camera in a restaurant in Istanbul captured two FBI agents on vacation sitting at a table with their families. A man with a backpack walks in and suddenly everyone at the table grabs their head as if in pain. Our sources say another video comes from a stairwell in the U.S. embassy in Vienna. The stairs lead to a secure facility. In the video, two people on the stairs suddenly collapse.
Those videos and the weapon were among the reasons the Biden administration summoned about half a dozen victims to the White House with about two months left in the president’s term.
At this point, you have to wonder why we’ve been sitting on all of this for more than a year. Obviously if we have proof that these were real attacks on US personnel carried out by Russia we ought to be responding to those attacks instead of pretending they didn’t happen.
The whole report is worth watching but the bottom line is that this isn’t theoretical anymore. We have a working device. We also have video of it being used on Americans. And all of that is why our intel agencies started changing course at the end of the Biden administration.
Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy Hot Air’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join Hot Air VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
