The White House
US diplomats and government employees suffering from a mysterious illness known as "Havana Syndrome" have criticized the Biden administrations response, warning that afflicted individuals are still being denied medical care.
The staffers said the US government has continued to "reject scientific evidence regarding the injuries and treatment needs" as well as "invalidate our injuries and experiences" in recent months.
They said military and intelligence officials who have been hurt by the same inexplicable event are being taken more seriously.
"After four years of challenges, we were hopeful that the new administration would welcome a partnership with us to ensure those affected receive the care and treatment they need and ensure appropriate care for the new cases," the letter reads. "Unfortunately, our experience thus far has fallen short of our renewed expectations."
The inexplicable constellation of physical symptoms that have struck more than 130 US diplomats, spies and troops around the world, notably in Cuba and China, Russia and Western Europe, and have come to be known as "Havana Syndrome" after US diplomatic personnel in Cuba experienced the occurrences in 2016.
The mysterious illness disrupts the nervous system and causes a varying set of issues, including ear-popping, vertigo, pounding headaches, nausea and a "piercing directional noise".
The letter was written on behalf of 21 US government employees and their spouses who have been harmed overseas, notably in Cuba and China, and are suspected or proven Havana Syndrome cases.
The authors had requested that Ambassador Pamela Spratlen, the official in charge of the State Departments undertaken measures, attend a formal meeting to address their concerns in March, but they still have not received a response.
"Senior Department leaderships continued refusal to meet with and hear directly from its injured personnel is discouraging," the group wrote.
According to the letter, many of the affected employees have had to get the government to corroborate their injuries, resulting in what theyve characterized as exhaustive battles to acquire workers compensation or other benefits and care.
The letter came amid rising congressional pressure on the Biden administration to provide better care for wounded US personnel and to figure out how they sustained brain injuries more than four years after the US government began examining what it initially referred to as "targeted attacks."
Last month, the heads of the US Senate Intelligence Committee warned that the mysterious illness targeting American diplomats "appears to be increasing," calling the occurrences "debilitating attacks".
A report by the US National Academy of Sciences concluded that the strange health incidents were most likely caused by exposure to "directed, pulsed radiofrequency energy", also known as microwave energy.
A National Security Agency memo had revealed that the agency had intelligence, which pointed to the possible existence of "a high-powered microwave system weapon ... designed to bathe a targets living quarters in microwaves, causing numerous physical effects, including a damaged nervous system."
Congress has expressed concern that the US government has failed to coordinate efforts out of multiple agencies -- including the Pentagon, intelligence community and State Department -- to address the mysterious problem.
LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/22567
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