The US government has acquired a device that may be linked to the 'Havana syndrome' that has caused brain damage in diplomats and CIA officers.

In 2017, reports emerged of health problems, including hearing loss and brain damage, among U.S. and Canadian embassy staff in Havana, Cuba. It has been reported that the U.S. government secretly acquired a device that may be related to this problem, also known as 'Havana Syndrome.'

Device that may be tied to 'Havana Syndrome' obtained by US government - CBS News
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/device-havana-syndrome-obtained-by-us-government/

Havana Syndrome is a collective term used to describe cases of diplomats, CIA agents, and military officers stationed in Cuba and around the world who have suffered from unexplained symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, headaches, loss of balance, tinnitus, and nosebleeds. Many victims report hearing extremely high-pitched, painful sounds, which they perceive as quieter when they move to another location.

Research has shown that victims may experience damage to the parts of their brains that control memory and sleep cycles. The exact cause is unknown, but there are various theories, including mass hysteria , mosquito repellents , cricket chirps , and stealth attacks using secret microwave weapons .

A study finds that the majority of 'Havana Syndrome' cases in which diplomats suffered mysterious brain injuries are not the result of attacks by other countries, while some reports remain unexplained - GIGAZINE

In January 2026, American news media outlet CBS News reported that the US government had secretly acquired a device potentially related to Havana Syndrome in late 2024. According to two people familiar with the matter, the device was purchased for hundreds of millions of yen by Homeland Security Investigations, a subsidiary of the US Department of Homeland Security , under the administration of former US President Joe Biden.

The device, reportedly the size of a portable backpack and containing some Russian-made components, emits pulsed radio frequency energy and has been under testing by the Department of Defense for over a year. Investigators believe it may be able to replicate the symptoms reported by victims of Havana Syndrome.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is leading a review of the intelligence community's past cases, and three people familiar with the matter said the review is nearly complete but not yet ready to be shared with lawmakers or made public.

A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said Tulsi Gabbard remains committed to sharing the findings of her 'extraordinary health incident' with the American public, 'but we are not in a rush to release incomplete information.'

Mark Polymeropoulos, a former CIA officer who claims to have been a victim of Havana Syndrome in Moscow, Russia, in 2017, said, 'The CIA has always maintained that this technology doesn't even exist, that the devices don't exist, and they've based their assessments on that. So all of their analytical assumptions have been overturned.' He called for a thorough investigation.