US pays out $3m to victims of mystery Havana Syndrome condition reported by spies

The US Department of Defence announced it has paid $3 million in compensation to victims of Havana Syndrome, a mysterious condition first reported by US spies and diplomats. The payments were made under the Havana Act, which was signed into law in 2021.

For years, there has been widespread speculation about the cause of Havana Syndrome, with some suggesting microwaves or a sonic weapon used by a foreign power. The department stated it would continue to prioritise "the care of affected personnel".

Former CIA analyst Erika Stith told CBS News in 2022: "My brain is broken. We got this as a result of serving our country. And we deserve to be taken care of."

Last year, most US intelligence agencies concluded it was "very unlikely" that a foreign actor had used a novel weapon or prototype device to harm US personnel. However, a small part of the intelligence community did not completely dismiss the idea.

The National Intelligence Council report emphasised that none of the agencies questioned "the experiences or suffering" of US workers and their families. The community believed they experienced genuine, sometimes painful and traumatic, physical symptoms and sensory phenomena, and reported them honestly as possible anomalous health incidents.