Nineteen American travelers who visited Cuba have reported symptoms similar to those suffered by U.S. diplomats in Cuba, following a travel warning for the country posted several months ago. These cases are not thought to be related to the 24 U.S. embassy personnel, who were allegedly subject to attacks that started in late 2016 and may have caused cognitive impairment, hearing loss and other symptoms, Newsweek reports.
The State Department issued the warning on September 29. The Department then said that the victims have felt ear complaints, hearing loss, dizziness, fatigue, headache, cognitive issues and difficulty sleeping. Medical documents show diagnoses of concussions.
A spokeswoman from the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said that the department continues to urge Americans to reconsider traveling to Cuba.
Back in October, another State Department official said that Washington had received reports from Americans who said that they experienced similar symptoms after visiting Cuba, but the department did not mention whether they heard strange sounds or suffered the same types of attacks as some of the diplomats.
“We’re not in the position to medically evaluate or provide an individual medical assessment. Nevertheless, we urge U.S. citizens, who travel to Cuba and are concerned about their symptoms, that they seek medical attention,” the spokeswoman said.
FBI has reportedly ruled out any evidence that supports the claim of waves being employed against U.S. staffers in Havana, Associated Press reported earlier this month. Afterwards, the department changed its travel alert system from “do not travel” to “reconsider” visiting Cuba. Officials from the State Department have sustained that there was an attack of some sort even if it wasn’t a sonic one.
Meanwhile, a bipartisan congressional group met Cuban officials in the island’s capital last weekend to discuss the alleged American staff injuries.
“I have no evidence—based on conversations with the Cubans and with our U.S. officials—no evidence, that [the attacks] occurred. I think we should restore our diplomats and either end this travel warning or share with the public the evidence that supports the travel warning,” Representative Barbara Lee, who was part of the group, said.
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