American diplomats in Cuba were likely targeted by microwave energy, study finds

Mark Lenzi, a State Department security officer who worked in the U.S. consulate in Guangzhou, China, told "60 Minutes" last year that he and his wife began experiencing symptoms in 2017 after hearing strange sounds in their apartment."I believe it's RF, radio frequency energy, in the microwave range," Lenzi told Scott Pelley.His suspicion appears consistent with the committee's conclusions. Intelligence sources told "60 Minutes" that in addition to Cuba and China, Russia is a suspect.In its report, the committee wrote that "studies published in the open literature more than a half century ago and over the subsequent decades by Western and Soviet sources provide circumstantial support for" directed, pulsed RF energy as a possible source, and said it was left with "a number of concerns.""The mere consideration of such a scenario raises grave concerns about a world with disinhibited malevolent actors and new tools for causing harm to others, as if the U.S. government does not have its hands full already with naturally occurring threats," reads the report.According to the committee, because it was not able to "assess specific scenarios involving malevolent actors," it strongly suggested that follow-up studies "be undertaken by subject-matter experts with proper clearance, including those who work outside the U.S. government, with full access to all relevant information."It warned of "future new cases among DOS or other U.S. government employees working overseas," saying it was concerned about the U.S. government's ability to "recognize and respond to these cases in a coordinated and effective manner." Adding, "the next event may be even more dispersed in time and place, and even more difficult to recognize quickly."