American officials believe Russia was behind the mysterious sonic attacks on diplomats

U.S. embassy in Havana, Cuba.
(Image credit: YAMIL LAGE/AFP/Getty Images)

U.S. intelligence officials reportedly believe Russia was responsible for attacks that have caused American diplomats in Cuba and China to become mysteriously ill over the past two years.

Starting in 2016, Americans at the U.S. Embassy in Havana began to experience hearing loss, impaired vision, dizziness, and symptoms of brain injury that could not be explained. The most recent incident occurred earlier this year, when the U.S. withdrew several diplomats from China after a government worker experienced signs of a brain injury, per The Washington Post. In total, 26 people have been affected.

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The U.S. government reportedly believes that some sort of electromagnetic weapon was used, but officials are doing tests on animals with various devices to try to figure out for sure how the attacks were carried out, NBC News reports.

The mysterious attacks had prompted the State Department to permanently reduce much of the Havana embassy's staff earlier this year, as well as cease regular visa services and issue a travel advisory warning Americans to exercise "extreme caution" when traveling to Cuba.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.