Sinister Cuban experience highlights new threats
Terrifying American study finds concussion-like impact, Dr. Adam Kassam writes.
Diplomats, now more than ever, play a crucial role in maintaining the stability of geopolitical relationships around the world. They represent the interests of nation states and are tasked with negotiating strategic agreements that have become the hallmark of a globalized society. While many view a diplomat’s job as a luxuriously taxpayer-funded sabbatical, in reality, diplomats are exposed to many risks that can jeopardize their own personal safety and quality of life.
A good example is the experience of Canadian and American foreign service workers in Havana, who were reported to be targets of sensory attacks in late 2016. These individuals developed a number of neurological symptoms after experiencing strange sensations, including sounds and vibrations. The mystery surrounding these events only deepened as American officials blamed the Cuban government, who rebutted these claims. Both the FBI and RCMP have been investigating, which included evaluations of these patients by physicians in Canada and in the United States.
On Feb. 15, physicians at the University of Pennsylvania published their findings as a case series in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Their results are terrifying. Researchers evaluated all of the 21 diplomats who were believed to be targeted. There were 10 male and 11 female patients with an average age of 43, who were evaluated six months after the exposure. The majority of patients heard a loud, sustained and directional sound that corresponded with the start of their symptoms.
Persistent symptoms included difficulty with memory, concentration, balance, mood alteration, insomnia, headaches, visual and sound sensitivity. Patients were also evaluated with MRI imaging of their brains that showed non-specific changes; in other words, there was nothing on their scans that explained their symptoms.
The authors concluded that the constellation of these neurological findings were most consistent with a mild traumatic brain injury, also known as a concussion.
Importantly, for many of the patients I have seen who have had a concussion, there is usually nothing mild about it, as they can be significantly limited by uneven recovery. Just ask Sidney Crosby. What is especially worrisome is the absence of any head trauma that usually accompanies these types of injuries. The fact that the researchers describe this as a potentially novel entity suggests its deliberate nature.
The circumstances surrounding the Canadian diplomats who suffered similar episodes remain unknown. Federal officials are undoubtedly working through their ongoing investigations, but may never reveal what they find. While Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland may elect to withhold information for national security purposes, Canadian health-care officials owe it to the scientific community to conduct a similar study and publish their findings in the same way their American counterparts have. Given the similarity of attack timelines, this should take place sooner rather than later.
The importance of global diplomacy has been in jeopardy since the United States announced its intentions to significantly scale down its State Department operations. This, of course, coincides with the mounting evidence of foreign interference in elections around the world, including possibly here in Canada. The rise of fake news and growth in online propaganda should concern all those interested in preserving an open and transparent democracy.
Diplomats are the ones who broker international stability through the back channels that underpin our global geopolitical frameworks. They are the unsung heroes who dedicate their lives to their country by spending a significant amount of time away from it. This often happens in the far reaches of the world that are unglamorous and, in many instances, dangerous. This sinister Cuban experience highlights the potentially new and emerging threats that our country faces. Ultimately, our federal officials should make it a priority to work with our health-care leaders to determine a cause and develop a treatment and prevention strategy for the future.