Scoop: A long-awaited report by the US intel community concludes ‘Havana Syndrome’ was not caused by an energy weapon or foreign adversary, shattering a widespread theory that a secret device debilitated scores of spies & diplomats. By @shaneharris & me washingtonpost.com/national-secur…
The report caps a years-long effort by the intelligence community to explain why US personnel experienced what they described as strange and painful acoustic sensations
Many of the afflicted personnel say they were the victims of a deliberate attack — possibly at the hands of Russia — a claim that the report contradicts in nearly every respect, officials said.
7 intel agencies participated in the review of roughly 1k cases. 5 agencies found it was “very unlikely” that a foreign adversary was responsible for the symptoms, either as the result of a directed energy weapon or as the byproduct of something else like electronic surveillance
1 agency abstained in its conclusion regarding a foreign actor. But when asked, no agency dissented from the conclusion that a foreign actor did not cause the symptoms, an official said.
Officials said they found no pattern or common set of conditions that could link individual cases. They also found no forensic information or geolocation data that would suggest an adversary had used a form of directed energy such as radio waves or ultrasonic beams.
There was no intelligence that foreign leaders had any knowledge of or had authorized an attack on U.S. personnel that could explain the symptoms, an official said.
In some cases, there was no “direct line of sight” to affected personnel working at U.S. facilities, further casting doubt on the possibility that a hypothetical energy weapon could have been the culprit, one of the officials said.
Despite the new conclusions, Secretary of State Blinken remains of the view that something happened to those employees who have reported significant ailments, and he is committed to making sure they are cared for, per source. Blinken has long doubted the mass hysteria theory
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Breaking: Jake Sullivan traveled in secret to Kyiv in a trip aimed at reaffirming U.S. support for the beleaguered ally despite an impasse in Congress over U.S. funding. “We are confident we will get this done, we will get this aid to Ukraine," Sullivan said
Sullivan arrived in Kyiv as the country’s forces are on their back foot having retreated from the eastern city of Avdiivka and facing Russian advances across the front lines. “You should believe in the United States,” Sullivan said
A faction of Republicans in Congress have held up additional funding for Ukraine, faulting the administration for failing to spell out a vision for victory and saying the tens of billions spent already have only achieved a stalemate.
Scoop: A secret assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency casts doubts about Israel’s prospects for success if it mounts a significant escalation against Hezbollah, saying IDF resources will be spread too thin given the war in Gaza, per sources. 🧵
The assessment has bolstered concerns among some in the Biden administration who are wary of comments from senior Israeli officials that Israel will need to expand military operations against Hezbollah
U.S. officials remain concerned that Netanyahu may see an expanded fight in Lebanon as key to his political survival amid domestic criticism of his government’s handling of Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack
scoop: Russia has begun firing ballistic missiles into Ukraine that were provided by North Korea, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive U.S. intelligence.
The North Korean projectiles were short-range ballistic missiles that Moscow fired in late December and early January. The deployment indicates North Korea's growing support for Moscow’s war effort washingtonpost.com/national-secur…
In November, South Korea accused North Korea of supplying several types of missiles to Russia, including anti-tank missiles, portable anti-air missiles, ballistic missiles and rifles, rocket launchers, mortars and shells.
US State Department calls out Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir for "inflammatory and irresponsible" rhetoric "advocating for the resettlement of Palestinians outside of Gaza."
In a reference to Netanyahu, the statement says "We have been told repeatedly and consistently by the Government of Israel, including by the Prime Minister, that such statements do not reflect the policy of the Israeli government. They should stop immediately."
It's worth noting that Netanyahu on several occasions asked Western leaders, including Biden/Macron/Scholz/Sunak, to pressure Egypt to take in Gazans -- a request they all refused, noting that Egypt has made clear it has no interest in playing any role in their mass displacement
NEW: U.S. officials concede that the United States is not conducting real-time assessments of Israel’s adherence to the laws of war 🧵
Despite that, the United States has flooded Israel with weapons since Oct. 7, transferring at least 15k bombs, including 2k pound bunker buster bombs.
In the first month and a half, Israel dropped more than 22,000 guided and unguided bombs on Gaza that were supplied by Washington, according to previously undisclosed U.S. intelligence
New deep dive from @yabutaleb7 and I on how the Biden administration has handled intense internal disagreements during the course of the Hamas-Israel War 🧵
A day after Biden publicly cast doubt about Palestinian casualty numbers provided by the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, a move many saw as effectively downplaying the level of suffering in Gaza, he expressed regret to a private meeting of Muslim Americans:
The White House says Biden's "bear hug" approach (avoiding public criticism of Israel) has allowed him to influence Israel's actions: Israel had planned to flood into Gaza with a massive ground force, but U.S. officials convinced them to send a third as many troops: