Havana Syndrome: Is Russia behind the mysterious illness? | 60 Minutes Australia

I just got home from the embassy and I was in my bed, it felt like my head was being crushed. It sounded very, very loud in my ears. I could feel my brain shutting down the ills of the secret war. They said yes, you have a Traumatic brain injury is a weapon of the future that is being fired right now, if someone comes up with a new weapon system, we better find out on 60 Minutes, the

mysterious

illness

, the

syndrome

of Havana, open. Sonic weapon, hundreds injured in a baffling mystery. Pandora's Box really exists. and someone just opened arriving in Australia directly from a spy Thriller but who is the attacker?

A secret murder weapon is then placed on him. Some people might applaud the ingenuity. The majority will condemn the barbarism. Apparently, a new secret weapon has been developed and is being used. to target hundreds of high-ranking US government workers, they are diplomats, military officials and spies who believe they have been struck under very

mysterious

circumstances by even stranger energy waves. After being attacked, victims report a variety of debilitating neurological ailments that seriously affect their lives. What they are suffering from is called Havana

syndrome

because it was first detected in Cuba but there is no prize for guessing that it is another country that is targeted. accused of being responsible for it this man is a former US spy he worked in the Shadows on classified missions and secret deployments we cannot say where he is or the precise nature of his work in US intelligence We will call him by the pseudonym Adam , but it is better known as zero patience.

Do you often think about your life before this happened? I try. I don't think I was lucky when I forgot what it felt like to be my old self, you had the world at your feet, really, didn't you? Yeah, I mean, I was in the prime of my life and, yeah, it was taken away from me. disappeared very, very quickly Adam is considered the first known victim of Havana syndrome, a sometimes devastating affliction that has affected hundreds of American officials over the past 8 years, from career diplomats to military and intelligence officers, and even members of their families.

The strange theory is that they are all targets of a hidden enemy that wields energy waves as a weapon. I could feel the sounds in my head. There was intense pressure on both temples inside my right ear. It was like a dentist drilling on steroids. I felt like he was. being hit with something like being smashed from the top of your head into the ground, resulting in shortened careers and ruined lives and an endless range of ailments, from neurological impacts and cognitive impairments to vertigo, persistent headaches, loss of vision and hearing, although the symptoms It is not in doubt what caused them, there is still much that is unknown, but the idea that we know enough to give up looking for the cause, I think is a big mistake.

Tonight, the mystery of Havana syndrome. Pandora's Box really exists and someone has just opened it. the victims how I have suffered I would not wish it on my worst enemy the doubts what is happening is a great case of massive deception and the new evidence that shows who could be responsible I think we have a probable culprit at least behind some of the Havana syndrome incidents attacks These photos tell the story of Adam's previous life Fit and adventurous He traveled the world and was a rising star in the CIA In December 2016 he was assigned to the United States Embassy in Havana Cuba at the end of an On any given day, he experienced an extraordinary sensation.

I just got home from the embassy and I was in my bed and all the dogs in the neighborhood started barking in unison, which I noticed was unusual shortly after it happened, then this really loud, piercing sound filled me. In my room it felt like my head was in a vise and it was just being squeezed and the increasing pressure felt like my head was just being crushed and then a severe ear pain started, it was just a really severe jarring pain and I finally started. Fainting Adam is convinced that he was attacked by some type of energy weapon upon his return to the United States.

He suffered mysterious neurological symptoms in search of answers. They subjected him to a battery of tests. What did the doctors tell you was wrong? o o What injuries did you have, they came back and said yes, you have a traumatic brain injury, which was a little shocking just because I hadn't been hit in the head. Nothing had happened to me. Now I'm blind in one eye. Adam wears a special weight vest to help him maintain his balance and has a service dog by his side wherever he goes, so what are you living with today? Everything from all kinds of cognitive problems, memory problems, blind on one side, I mean, the list goes on and on and on. and unfortunately, and not the only one of the two dozen cases identified in Havana, Cuba, which gave rise to the name of the syndrome, there have been hundreds of sufferers around the world in homes, hotels, embassies and other places.

Attacks have been reported on the White House grounds, including Here in Australia, 3 years ago, two senior CIA officers were here in Syney to meet with their Australian counterparts, while in their hotel rooms they heard a sound Strangely, they felt pressure on their heads and felt dizzy and nauseous. A CIA investigation used cell phone data. placing two Russian agents in the vicinity of the attacks, which were later confirmed by high-level Australian government sources. I'm not saying I know exactly what's going on, but what I do know is that we haven't done enough work to conclude that the problem is non-existent given the large number and caliber of those suffering from the symptoms of Havana syndrome. .

Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton is worried that something untoward may be happening. I think we need to be concerned because the threats that our adversaries will come up with will not necessarily resemble the weapons systems that we have used in the past and given that we have a historical record of foreign governments attempting to intimidate or harm our people who are stationed abroad this is something that has a historical legacy and gives more credence to the idea that perhaps a new generation of weapons is unfortunately being developed. It may sound like science fiction, but there are already energy weapons that use microwaves, emitting sharp pulses of radio frequencies to destroy.

Some experts believe that portable microwave weapons capable of causing the type of symptoms experienced in Havana syndrome could have been developed by enemies of the United States, but to date, if they exist, they have never been found. Do you accept that it's hard? that people believe they exist when in fact no one has seen one of these weapons there is no one in public who has seen these weapons are you saying that the government knows that they exist and knows what they look like, knows what is going on here? that's my belief for John Bolton. The Havana syndrome theory is plausible because it occurs so close to home that you have had personal experience with Havana syndrome.

Haven't you two on your team gotten sick? That's actually on the campus on the White House grounds in Washington and whether it was directed energy or whatever kind of weapon, uh, prototype, it could be, it also meant that it was portable and one of my other employees who was seen affected, uh, not just in London, but potentially near his residence in Virginia, that type of laptop. AC capability put in a van or a truck or something means it could attack and be gone before we can find out, so you're saying a country is shooting energy weapons through the walls of buildings, it has that capability.

I think our adversaries are looking for ways to use directed energy or perhaps other techniques to be able to incapacitate senior officials or large military formations through this new technology so that we don't have adequate defenses and we just don't have enough evidence. It can't yet be judged one way or another, whatever is happening, it's a mystery on a monumental scale, but as you'll see, intriguing new evidence has emerged that could provide some answers. Unit 29155, what is put in a secret assassination and sabotage weapon? The medals and photographs tell the story of a long and distinguished clandestine career in some of the most dangerous places on Earth.

Mark. I can't imagine that sitting in front of a camera speaking in public is something you would be comfortable with. Well, certainly not. anything I ever thought would happen after 26 years truly living in the shadows Mark Poly Moropolis is a highly decorated former CIA chief who has become one of the strongest and most senior voices among hundreds of intelligence officials convinced that they are victims of Herán syndrome when you think about it. Going back to those days, you were in the CIA, you were in leadership, where are you today? Well, I'm certainly retired, um, so you know what happened to me and you're right, I mean, I was at the It was kind of the top of the pyramid at the CIA.

I had 2,000 people working for me and I was responsible for almost 50 countries, but I couldn't go any further and you know it was in the middle of 200 19. I had to step aside. Two years earlier, in December 2017, he was sent to Moscow to talk with Russian agents about counterterrorism. It was not a spy mission. It was nothing unusual. He was wearing a business suit. You know, I would stay in a five-star hotel. uh, a very, very routine trip. Market felt like both a tourist and an undercover agent, but that changed one night after returning to his hotel room in central Moscow.

I was, you know, affected by something pretty serious. I woke up in the middle of the night and the room was spinning I had an extreme case of vertigo I had a terrible headache A headache in the back of my head I had what is called ttis It was ringing in my ears and I felt like I was going to being physically ill and it was look, this was really disconcerting, really scary, what's happening to me. Mark has little doubt that not only was he on the radar of the Russians, but he was also attacked by them upon his return to the United States, headaches and cognitive problems made his life a living hell, eventually I was diagnosed by the US military, doctors at Walter Reed Traumatic Brain Injury Center, I was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, what does that mean?

Well, it's a silent wound, so you know it's actually hard because no one necessarily believes you why. Do you think you were the target? For me it is a question that I believe we will find in the bowels of Russian intelligence one day. If you look at what Vladimir Putin has done in recent years, it is a pattern of this Russian. I know evil behavior, so the idea of ​​taking someone off the battlefield, without really knowing what he is or who did it, makes a lot of sense to me, that the Russians are a part of this.

You wouldn't think that a police chase on a Florida highway could somehow be related to the mystery of Havana syndrome, stop, stop, what begins with a speeding chase ends with an accident and a dramatic arrest. The driver is Vitali Kovalev, he is an electronics engineer with high-level clearance in the Russian military and American intelligence believes that he is a Russian spy. He speaks English. What is the problem? Now you're going to go to jail. Do you know what that means. Insider Magazine the FBI was very interested in this young man and they arrested him. The CBS team shared this data with me and said, what can we know about this person?

Christo is known for his work exposing Russian plots, including the poisoning of Vladimir Putin. His rival Alexi Naali has delved into the Havana syndrome phenomenon and discovered evidence of Russian connections to some attacks. I am convinced that Russia has the motive, the Mandate, the capacity and the presence, and I believe that Russia is behind at least some of the attacks. The Havana syndrome incidents in the case of Vitali Kovalev what emerged was the detail of his experience in Russian military intelligence and his expertise in electronics that could be used in the development of energy weapons, plus the intrigue. 60 Minutes aired an interview with a disguised FBI agent who interrogated Kovalev for hours while he was held in police custody because she claims he suffered mysterious Havana syndrome type symptoms and I remember complaining to my colleagues for months after that I felt like I had early Alzheimer's, my baseline changed.

He was no longer the same. person shortly after being attacked was scheduled to report her findings about theal kovalev to a US Congressional investigative committee and we believe she was injured because they wanted to disqualify her from reporting on kovalev's work a secret attachment found by Hackers would give Christo hismost convincing evidence yet, a document that reveals the internal dealings of unit 29155, a crack of the Russian Military Assassination Squad, unit 29155, what is it?, It is involved in secret assassinations and sabotage. A weapon. It is a unit that has between 50 and 60 people. whose objective is to leave Russia travel with false identities assassinate exploit and create a disturbance in different governments the document reveals that an officer of the Russian unit received a cash bonus for working on potential non-lethal acoustic weapons capabilities for Christo is what There was I have been looking for a non-lethal acoustic weapon to use in Urban Warfare scenarios and that was the moment I thought we now have the capability, not only the motive and the Mandate, but also the capability of this particular unit.

Christo tells the detailed investigation of him. He may not have found an actual energy weapon, but he is certain that he has linked unit 29155 to reported Havana syndrome attacks around the world. We found members of this unit present just before or during the Havana incidents in at least seven different locations around the world and it is difficult to explain that, apart from coincidences, what their conclusion is when it comes to Havana syndrome. My conclusion is that we have found a country that has the capacity and has invested in this capacity. has the will to use such a weapon against American diplomats and a unit that has been in the wrong place at the wrong time having developed such technology at this time.

I think we have a probable culprit that someone needs to provide an alibi so we don't see them as guilty, but as you will see, for some the very idea of ​​Havana syndrome is an illusion, there is no tooth theory, there is no Dad Noel and there is no Havana syndrome, it is a myth for all resources. Americans have tried hard to explain the mystery of Havana syndrome. There are still more questions than answers, but some think there is a very simple explanation for this strange phenomenon. Robert, what is happening here, what is happening is a great case of mass deception.

Human beings have deceived themselves, there is no Havana syndrome, there is no tooth theory and Havana syndrome is a myth. Robert Bartholomew is an author and medical sociologist at Oakland University who believes this is an almighty example of a mass psychogenic

illness

. This is one of the craziest stories. Have I ever come across the idea that for the last 7 years the United States government has dug themselves into this hole and thrown tens of millions of dollars in resources into that hole and at the end of the day they have come to the conclusion that they're just rabbits, they didn't find sonic ray guns or spies because conventional science can explain Havana syndrome.

Possible symptoms of the mysterious illness called Havana syndrome. mysterious neurological symptoms. What began in Cuba, according to Robert, has spread through the power of suggestion to countries around the world. world convincing high-level people in high-stress roles that they are under some type of attack after this initial theory that they could be attacked with some weapon began in late 2016, the state department issued a warning to the entire staff in your embassies around the world who may be targeted by a sonic or microwave weapon, if you hear an unusual sound and are not feeling well, please report it as soon as possible.

More than 1500 people around the world reported that they heard strange sounds and felt bad, and that's part of the problem because Havana Syndrome the symptoms are so vague headache nausea uh dizziness difficulty concentrating fatigue titis uh difficulty sleeping everything It is very confusing in the case of CIA officer Adam, doubts have been raised about what he heard in Cuba the night he says he was attacked. This captured audio recording has been analyzed by experts who assessed that it was done by nothing more sinister than crickets. What do you say to people who say that this was a psychogenic illness that this is just mass hysteria, what do those words mean to someone like you? from someone who is uninformed and doesn't understand what we've been through, is a view shared by former CIA chief Mark Poly Moropolis, who says the idea that it's all in the mind is ridiculous.

I have a friend, a colleague, who was affected by this. injured, she received treatment, but so did her six-month-old baby, how can a six-month-old child who doctors diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury? How does a six-month-old suffer from mass hysteria or some kind of uh? you know that psychogenic illness, so the load of mass hysteria really has no validity, how do you explain that it affects their families, even six-month-old babies, because people have abnormal health incidents all over the world every day, millions of people and so when do they say? a baby was affected, how do they know the symptoms were caused by some type of ray gun?

These are people who are in the highest circles of American intelligence. They are smart people at the top of their game. I think they are impressionable and would make up something like this, could you? Well, this is what happens with functional neurological disorders. Mass psychogenic illnesses. The symptoms are as real as any condition they suffer from. They are experiencing these things, but we are saying that they are Not attacked by some microwave weapon, they went out in search of unicorns when they should have stuck to mundane explanations. Perhaps not surprisingly, the US government has struggled to find a consistent position on such a contentious issue in 2021, at the peak of Havana syndrome cases.

Known as anomalous health incidents or Ahi, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinkin was determined to find answers about what and who could be behind this. We are working tirelessly with partners across government to identify what is causing this incidents and who. is responsible, this is an urgent priority, but in 2023 extensive investigations by the intelligence community found that it was highly unlikely that a foreign adversary played a role and that deliberate causal mechanisms were highly unlikely to have caused the sensory phenomena and adverse symptoms associated with health anomalies. incidents the findings that the intelligence community has spoken to today in no way call into question the experiences the symptoms that our colleagues and their families have reported in recent years in other words, the symptoms are real but the cause is unknown and not The foreign government is to blame for the biggest problem in this whole case, whether it's identifying who's doing it, identifying the weapon, identifying when it happens, where it happens, a lot of this story is in the Ranked Arena, that's why it's so easy for the US government say there's nothing to see here Mark Zade is a lawyer who represents dozens of Havana syndrome clients and believes they are victims of a cover-up. my government, the United States government absolutely 100% lies to the American people in the world about what they know.

There is so much skepticism around this, you accept it, right? I'm not surprised by this misnomer that this is not a real thing. Many people have difficulty understanding things they cannot see, but I am convinced that it is not mass hysteria. I find it insulting that anyone would suggest that this is mass hysteria. Patient zero of Havena syndrome. The last 8 years have been harder than I could have imagined. You served your country and loved your job. Do you feel betrayed by the country you served when you joined? organization they sold it to me as a family we rally around you we know your sacrifice and that's why you accept it you know you drink the Kool-Aid and then you get hurt and you're going to wait a minute where are all the things you said?

I was going to be there and they weren't there and then it's a betrayal? Yeah, honestly, I think it was before the end of his interview. Adam had something he wanted to show us, Adam, what do you have with you there, so he received the Exceptional Service Medal from CIA Director Mike Pompeo. I'm happy to read it if you want, yes please. Quote from the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States of America. Adam is hereby awarded the Exceptional Service Medal in recognition of his selfless service despite being targeted by unknown forces and subject to unprecedented damaging attacks, his sacrifice and dedication to the Mission in the face of continuous and unpredictable attacks is a credit to him, the Central Intelligence Agency and the United States government, that's a lot of recognition in that portfolio, it certainly feels that way, yes, but it's a far cry from the recognition that you're getting today.

Irony is not lust for me, you know you get a medal and the quote looks at all these attacks that you experienced and then on the other side of the coin. They say there's nothing here if you can understand it great because I would love to know. Hi, I'm di Clancy, thanks for watching 60 Minutes Australia. Subscribe to our channel now to see new stories and exclusive clips every week. Don't miss our bonus minute segments and full episodes of 60 Minutes on .com. Au and ow app