What Was Havana Syndrome, the Mystery Illness that Hit American Spies?

CYBER

VICE

Tech News, News & Politics, Technology, News

4 • 645 Ratings

🗓️ 27 January 2023

⏱️ 50 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In 2016, Americans working in Cuba began to experience something strange. Something that is, to this day, unexplained. They felt a pressure in the brain, a ringing in their ear, and in the aftermath … a distressing sense of fatigue. This is Havana Syndrome, a mysterious ailment that felled spies and diplomats.

It remains a mystery to this day, one U.S. government officials have a hard time talking about let alone understanding. Sometimes it sounds like a frightening new weapon, other times like a classic moral panic. But what was it really? Will we ever know?

This is all the subject of a new podcast from VICE World News called Havana Syndrome. Over the course of the show’s nine episodes it unpacks not just the mysterious syndrome, but a history of spy and counterspy, the CIA, and America’s complicated relationship with Cuba.

With me here today to talk about it all is series producer Jesse Alejandro Cottrell.

Go here to check out ‘Havana Syndrome’ from VICE World News.

We’re recording CYBER live on Twitch and YouTube. Watch live during the week. Follow us there to get alerts when we go live. We take questions from the audience and yours might just end up on the show.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Tannen. It's got the code. It's going to launch.
0:10.8	It's a unit system. I know this.
0:15.2	It's how all the files of the whole park. It tells her everything.
0:19.2	Sir, he's uploading the virus.
0:21.9	The Eagle One, the package is being delivered.
0:24.7	Hello out there on the internet.
0:26.6	I am Matthew Galt.
0:28.1	This is Cyber.
0:29.6	In 2016, Americans working in Cuba began to experience something strange.
0:34.2	Something that is, to this day, unexplained.
0:37.7	They felt a pressure in the brain, a ringing in the ear, and in the aftermath, a distressing sense of fatigue.
0:43.8	This is Havana syndrome, a mysterious ailment that felled spies and diplomats alike.
0:49.8	It remains a mystery to this day, one the U.S. government has a hard time talking about, let
0:55.3	alone understanding. Sometimes it sounds like a frightening new weapon, other times like a classic
1:00.3	moral panic. But what was it really? Will we ever know? This is all the subject of new
1:06.1	podcast from Vice World News called Havana Syndrome. Over the course of the show's nine episodes,
1:11.2	it unpacks not just the mysterious syndrome, but a history of spy and counter spy, the CIA
1:16.6	and America's complicated relationship with Cuba. With us here to talk about it today is
1:22.3	series producer Jesse Alejandro Katrell. Sir, thank you so much for coming on to cyber and talking about this with us.
1:29.9	No, thanks for having.
1:31.3	All right.
1:31.5	So for the uninitiated, what was, or is, I guess, Havana syndrome?
	...

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