Americans warned of ‘attacks’ in Cuba

WASHINGTON — The United States delivered an ominous warning to Americans on Friday to stay away from Cuba and ordered home more than half the U.S. diplomatic corps, acknowledging neither the Cubans nor America’s FBI can figure out who or what is responsible for months of mysterious health ailments.

No longer tiptoeing around the issue, the Trump administration shifted to calling the episodes “attacks” rather than “incidents.”

The U.S. Embassy in Cuba will lose about 60 per cent of its American staff and will stop processing visas for prospective Cuban travellers to the United States indefinitely, officials said. About 50 Americans had been working at the embassy.

U.S. President Donald Trump said that in Cuba “they did some very bad things” that harmed American diplomats, but he didn’t say who he might mean by “they.”

Though officials initially suspected a futuristic “sonic attack,” the picture is muddy. The FBI and other agencies that searched homes and hotels where incidents occurred found no devices.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said: “Until the government of Cuba can ensure the safety of our diplomats in Cuba, our embassy will be reduced to emergency personnel in order to minimize the number of diplomats at risk of exposure to harm.”

In Friday’s travel warning, the State Department confirmed earlier reporting by the Associated Press that U.S. personnel first encountered unexplained physical effects in Cuban hotels. While American tourists aren’t known to have been hurt, the agency said they could be exposed if they travel to the island — a pronouncement that could hit a critical component of Cuba’s economy that has expanded in recent years as the U.S. has relaxed restrictions.