The Foreign Service Journal - October 2017

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2017 13 “Acoustic Attack” on U.S. Diplomats in Cuba S ince late last year, and following the re-establishment of U.S.-Cuba rela- tions two years ago, a possible “acoustic attack” has left at least 16 Americans at U.S. Embassy Havana and one Canadian diplomat with nausea, hearing loss, headaches and balance problems. Some have been diagnosed with “mild traumatic brain injury” and “likely damage to the central nervous system,” according to a report from CBS News. Ten affected FSOs met with AFSA representatives in the last week of August to report on the symptoms they have experienced. Some victims have been relocated to the United States while an American doctor was flown to Havana to treat others. The Cuban government has been known to harass U.S. government employees in Havana, but instances of physical harm were rare. High-frequency devices that could have been hidden near the residences are believed to be responsible, but as of this writing investigators have yet to find any evidence. Believed to be related to these incidents, in May, the State Department expelled two Cuban embassy officials which CBS subsequently identified as intelligence officials. Officials say the Cuban government is cooperating with the investigation. Havana has taken the unusual step of L awfare is a blog dedicated to national security issues, pub- lished by the Lawfare Institute in cooperation with the Brookings Institution. The term“lawfare” refers to the use of law as a weapon of conflict and also to the idea that America remains at war with itself over the law govern- ing its warfare with others. Initiated by BenjaminWittes (Senior Fellow in Governance Stud- ies for the Brookings Institution), Harvard Law School professor Jack Goldsmith and University of Texas at Austin law professor Robert Chesney in September 2010, contributors include practicing lawyers and law students, members of the military and former officials in the GeorgeW. Bush and Barack Obama administra- tions. According to Mr. Wittes, the bipar- tisan blog is devoted to the nebu- lous zone in which actions taken or contemplated to protect the nation interact with the nation’s laws and legal institutions. Recent topics have included the civil-military divide, nuclear prolifera- tion and U.S. involvement in Afghani- stan. The blog also covers civil liberties, cybersecurity and counter- terrorism issues. A weekly podcast features inter- views with policymakers, scholars and journalists. SITE OF THE MONTH: www.lawfareblog.com