CNN: Pentagon Tests Covert Device in Havana Syndrome Probe

The War Department reportedly has been testing a covertly acquired device that may be the cause of Havana Syndrome.

The Pentagon has spent more than a year testing a device purchased in an undercover operation that some investigators believe could be linked to the mysterious "anomalous health incidents" that have sickened U.S. spies, diplomats, and service members worldwide, CNN reported Tuesday.

The device was bought for "eight figures" — millions of taxpayer dollars — in the waning days of the Biden administration, according to four sources briefed on the matter.

According to the network, the purchase was carried out by Homeland Security Investigations, a division within the Department of Homeland Security, using War Department funding.

The device allegedly produces pulsed radio waves, a possible explanation long raised by some officials and academics for symptoms that have included vertigo, severe headaches, tinnitus, and cognitive issues.

One source told CNN the device can fit in a backpack — a detail that raises questions about whether such technology could be used in close proximity to American personnel without detection.

CNN also reported the device is not entirely Russian in origin but contains Russian components — further fueling concern that foreign adversaries may have developed, or helped enable, a directed-energy capability that can injure U.S. officials.

War Department officials reportedly viewed the findings seriously enough to brief the House and Senate intelligence committees late last year, including discussion of the acquired device and its testing.

The disclosure is reopening a bitter dispute inside the federal bureaucracy.

Havana Syndrome first emerged in 2016 among U.S. diplomats in Havana, Cuba, and has since been reported around the globe.

While victims and some lawmakers have argued the incidents resemble targeted attacks, the intelligence community has repeatedly downplayed the likelihood that a foreign adversary is responsible, a position that has angered those suffering long-term injuries.

A House Intelligence subcommittee's findings challenged the Biden-era 2023 intelligence community assessment that it was "very unlikely" a foreign adversary was behind the incidents.

Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ariz., called the assessment inconsistent with analytic integrity standards and urged the Trump administration to reassess it, citing what he described as "reliable evidence" that some cases were the work of foreign adversaries.

The New York Post, citing former CIA officer Marc Polymeropoulos, who says he was stricken in Moscow in 2017, reported Monday that victims want the Trump administration to expose what they call a Biden-era "cover-up" and official "gaslighting."

Polymeropoulos, one of the most prominent voices on the issue, told CNN the discovery of such devices would warrant a major public apology from the CIA for how victims were treated.

CNN reported there remains debate and skepticism within government about whether the device explains the dozens of cases still officially unresolved.

But officials are increasingly worried about proliferation. If the technology is viable, multiple hostile nations could possess similar tools, placing American personnel and national security at even greater risk.

• 2 US Intel Groups: Possible Enemy Behind Havana Syndrome
• Fmr CIA Officer: Agency Covered Up Havana Syndrome Attacks