The Pentagon opened an investigation last year after suspected directed-energy attacks occurred on an unknown number of troops, POLITICO first reported earlier Thursday˳
Lawmakers were officially notified on April 15 that the House Armed Services briefing would take place on Wednesday˳ Committee members heard from Jennifer Walsh, the acting Pentagon policy chief, and Griffin Decker, the Pentagon’s director of the emerging threats cell˳ The official notice, which was obtained by POLITICO, described the briefing as urgent and said it was centered on an “emerging threat˳”
“Due to the nature of the threat, members are highly encouraged to attend,” the notice stated˳
Officials told lawmakers that the phenomenon of suspected directed-energy attacks on U˳S˳ personnel — which cause a mysterious illness similar to the “Havana syndrome” reported by American spies and diplomats starting in late 2016 — is growing across the world, according to three people who attended Wednesday’s briefing˳
The briefers also told lawmakers that the origin of the technology required in such attacks is “more likely than not in Russia,” one of the people said˳ One person familiar with the briefing said the briefers also pointed to China as a possible culprit, and didn’t know for sure who was behind the attacks˳
The briefers said they were concerned about the growing frequency of apparent attacks around the world, but noted that they are especially concerned about the vulnerability of U˳S˳ personnel in the U˳S˳ Central Command area of operations, which includes combat zones from Syria and Iraq to Afghanistan, the people said˳
The facilities in these regions are not secure or “hardened in any real way,” one of the people said˳ “That makes them very, very vulnerable˳”
A Defense Department official familiar with the briefing, however, said the Central Command region was not a part of the discussion˳ Representatives of the Armed Services Committee and the National Security Council did not immediately respond to requests for comment˳
Rep˳ Jim Banks, an Indiana Republican on the Armed Services Committee, did not comment on any briefings but said the U˳S˳ government isn’t doing enough to protect personnel from directed-energy attacks˳ He noted that the bipartisan Future of Defense Task Force that he co-chaired looked at the issue˳
“It came up a lot on our task force last year as a major issue that we have done very little to address,” he told POLITICO˳ “We have failed to take it seriously as a threat˳”
Marc Polymeropoulos, a former CIA officer who suffered crippling symptoms in Moscow in December 2017 from a suspected directed-energy attack, called on lawmakers and officials to take the attacks seriously and to immediately treat the victims˳
“It is absolutely critical that we find out who did this,” he told POLITICO in an interview˳ “The idea of dismissing it outright is just not acceptable anymore˳”
POLITICO first reported on Thursday that Pentagon officials briefed top lawmakers earlier this year about the threat to U˳S˳ troops after an internal investigation launched last year looked into suspected attacks on American personnel around the world˳ The briefings included information about injuries sustained by U˳S˳ troops in Syria, people briefed on the suspected attacks as part of their oversight duties of the Pentagon said˳
However, after the article was published, Gen˳ Frank McKenzie, head of U˳S˳ Central Command, told lawmakers during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that he has seen “no evidence” of such attacks against U˳S˳ troops in his area of responsibility, which includes the Middle East and Afghanistan˳
People affected by attacks report symptoms including acute ringing and pressure in the ears, as well as loss of hearing and balance, fatigue and residual headaches˳ Some victims have suffered long-term brain damage˳
Close to 50 officials have reported such symptoms, known as “Havana syndrome,” among U˳S˳ diplomats posted in Cuba since late 2016˳ The CIA set up its own task force this year to look into the problem, CNN reported in February˳
Polymeropoulous also noted the “insidious nature” of the attacks in that it “not only calls into question what happened but also sows all sorts of doubt within the U˳S˳ government community, too˳”
“I wish I was shot˳ I wish it had been an open wound, because then you have something that is visible and treatable and instead this is an invisible wound,” he said˳ “It takes you off the battlefield, it incapacitates you, it doesn’t kill you … ultimately it’s a pretty brilliant terror weapon˳”
Erin Banco contributed to this report˳
