“Havana Syndrome” – A Panel featuring Nicky Woolf, Marc Polymeropoulos, and Mark Zaid

Summary

This week’s episode is the result of a collaboration with The Sound, a recent limited series podcast exploring the so-called Havana Syndrome. The guests are host and investigative journalist Nicky Woolf (Twitter), former senior CIA operations officer and sufferer Marc Polymeropoulos (Twitter), and attorney and advocate Mark Zaid (Twitter).

What You’ll LearnIntelligence

• What Havana Syndrome is
• Who it is affecting
• Theories to explain it
• The role of intelligence organizations

Reflections

• The unending search for truth 
• Humanity in the intelligence field 

Quotes of the Week

"There’s a betrayal I felt when the CIA didn't give me the medical attention that I needed. You know, if you're not feeling well and an employee comes to you, send 'em to the doctor. And they weren't able to do that. And to me, that's just a leadership fail for the ages." – Marc Polymeropoulos.

Resources *SpyCasts*

• The Past 75 Years: A History of the CIA with Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (2022)
• Dealing with Russia with Jim Olson (2022)
• One of the CIA’s Most Decorated Field Officers with Marc Polymeropoulos (2021)
• NatSec and the Law with Mark Zaid (2018)

*Beginner Resources*

• Havana Syndrome: What We Know, B. Tau and W. P. Strobel, The Wall Street Journal (2023) [Short article]
• What is the “Havana Syndrome?”, Brut America, YouTube (2022) [3 min. video]
• What is Havana Syndrome?, B. Cuffari, News Medical (2022) 

Video

• Who or What is Behind Havana Syndrome?, Al Jazeera, YouTube (2022)
• Early Victims of ‘Havana Syndrome’ Speak Out About Ongoing Health Struggles, NBC News, YouTube (2021)

Primary Sources 

• Updated Assessment of Anomalous Health Incidents, National Intelligence Council (2023)
• Anomalous health Incidents: Analysis of Potential Causal Mechanisms, IC Experts Panel (2022)
• Senate Hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, U.S. Senate (1978)
• Kissinger Telephone Conversation with Ambassador Dobrynin, National Security Archive (1975)
• Samuel Koslov Memorandum to the State Department, “Biomedical Phenomena,” National Security Archive (1965)

*Wildcard Resource*

• Havana Syndrome is an example of a toponymic term in the medical field – A name that comes from a geographic place. For more on medical etymology, check out this article that shares the backstory of the name of 7 well-known conditions.