Tally of injured in Havana embassy attacks rises by two

WASHINGTON — Two more U.S. government workers have been confirmed to be victims of invisible attacks in Cuba, the United States said Friday, raising the total to 24.

The tally has inched upward since the U.S. first disclosed in August that embassy workers and their families in Havana had been harmed by unexplained, mysterious incidents affecting their health. The Trump administration later said it had determined that the incidents were “specific attacks” that are ongoing, but investigators have not yet identified a weapon or a culprit.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the two additional victims “do not reflect new attacks.”

Nauert said the most recent attack is still believed to have taken place near the end of August. A U.S. official previously said that attack occurred Aug. 21.

The attacks started last year and affected American diplomats, intelligence officials and their spouses in Havana. They began in staffers’ homes in Havana, but the AP disclosed in September that they later occurred in hotels as well. The attacks in hotels began after the U.S. complained to President Raul Castro’s government, and Cuban security officials dramatically increased patrols around the U.S. workers’ homes, officials said.

Cuba has vehemently denied any knowledge or involvement in the attacks, emphasizing its eagerness to cooperate with the investigation being led by the FBI. The United States hasn’t blamed Cuba or any other actor of perpetrating the attacks, but it has faulted Castro’s government for failing to stop them, arguing that it’s Cuba’s responsibility under international law to protect foreign diplomats on its soil.

Asked Friday whether Trump was satisfied with the investigation, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders wouldn’t say.

Some of the cases involved mysterious, blaring sounds that led to investigators to consider whether a sonic weapon was involved.