Havana syndrome isn’t what we thought, a declassified report finds

THE BIG STORY

A secret State Department report says microwaves didn't cause "Havana syndrome"

(BuzzFeed News; Getty Images)

In 2016, dozens of US diplomats in Cuba and their families reported hearing buzzing noises and then experiencing puzzling neurological symptoms, including pain, vertigo, and difficulty concentrating. A newly declassified scientific review commissioned by the US State Department and obtained by BuzzFeed News found that noises linked to these mysterious injuries were most likely caused by crickets, not microwave weapons.

The report's findings reject the widely proposed theory that microwaves or ultrasound weapons are targeting US officials and flies in the face of a medical report commissioned by the State Department and published by a National Academies of Sciences panel last year. Though the latest report didn't definitively conclude what caused the injuries themselves, it found that mass "psychogenic" effects may have played a role.

"We believe the recorded sounds are mechanical or biological in origin, rather than electronic," the report concludes. "The most likely source is the Indies short-tailed cricket."

STAYING ON TOP OF THIS

Rep. Cori Bush shared a powerful story of getting an abortion when she was nine weeks pregnant

Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri told the story of her abortion to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on Sept. 30. (House Oversight Committee/via youtube.com)

During a House committee meeting on Thursday, Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri shared the story of getting an abortion after being sexually assaulted as a teenager.

"It was freeing, knowing I had options," Bush said of her decision to terminate the pregnancy.

Her testimony arrives at a time when new state legislation, such as Texas's six-week abortion ban, threatens the constitutional right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade. Carolyn Maloney, the chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, held Thursday's hearing to "sound the alarm" on the need to protect and expand abortion rights in the US.

"To all the Black women and girls who have had abortions and will have abortions, we have nothing to be ashamed of," Bush said. "We live in a society that has failed to legislate love and justice for us, so we deserve better. We demand better. We are worthy of better."

This was the first time Bush has told the full version of her abortion experience to the public. This story contains details of sexual violence.

SNAPSHOTS

An R. Kelly survivor said she was happy testifying against him because he no longer had control over her. Azriel Clary had previously defended R. Kelly in a 2019 interview. Now, she's spoken out about how she felt while testifying against him in federal court last month.

A British police officer was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Sarah Everard. Wayne Couzens' sentence is a rarity among British murder cases, which usually carry a minimum term set by the judge.

One of the most hated influencers on the internet is logging off. Acacia Kersey, 23, made online content for over a decade. She just announced that she's done monetizing her life and has decided it's "time to move on."

NEW ICE POLICY

The Biden administration is giving ICE officers flexibility in targeting "public safety" threats

A new Department of Homeland Security memo provides greater discretion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to determine which undocumented immigrants are considered "public safety" threats who warrant deportation.

The latest guidelines instruct officers to conduct an overall assessment of an immigrant's background but don't categorically list out convictions that are priorities or require preapproval for arrests.

While DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the guidelines "will enable our Department to most effectively accomplish our law enforcement mission," advocates fear this provides individual ICE officers with too much latitude to detain and deport immigrants. Sarah Deri Oshiro, managing director of the immigration practice at the Bronx Defenders, criticized the guidance for "[placing] the burden on immigrants to prove their humanity."

FERAL HOGS

Shakira was attacked by wild boars

Wild boars gather in a residential area in Haifa, Israel, on Dec. 5, 2019. These aren't the boars that attacked Shakira, probably. (Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images)

Shakira was walking with her son in a Barcelona park when they were attacked by wild boars, according to her recent Instagram story.

"They were taking my bag to the woods with my mobile phone in it," she said. "They've destroyed everything."

This attack isn't quite as random as it might seem — wild boars are a growing problem across Europe, with the police getting 1,187 phone calls about boars in Barcelona in 2016. Barcelona's City Hall website wrote, "Part of the population of wild boars in Collserola have lost their fear of people. Some of these animals are getting increasingly bold and can even become aggressive."

Thankfully, the pop icon was able to recover her bag from the runaway boars. She and her son have no reported injuries from the incident.

OCTOBER'S FIRST FRIDAY

The best month of the year has arrived. Celebrate with these exceptional long reads.

Kidz Bop has topped the charts for 20 years. How did that happen? Since its first album, KIDZ BOP, which opened with a cover of Smash Mouth's "All Star" and closed with Sixpence None the Richer's "Kiss Me," the franchise has been one of the recording industry's quietly enduring success stories.

In an era that has seen the music business all but collapse in on itself — declining album sales and revenue, streaming disrupting the traditional distribution model — Kidz Bop has managed to thrive. And it all started out with a couple of dads with a 1-800 number and a hunch.

Democrats swear it's not weird to be playing baseball with Marjorie Taylor Greene. This past Wednesday was the Congressional Baseball Game, one of the Capitol's oldest — and oddest — traditions. Ahead of the match, lawmakers told BuzzFeed News that bipartisan conflict over the Jan. 6 riots totally wouldn't make the sports game uncomfortable. But after a polarizing year rife with violence, can it really be just a game?

How TikTok's most viral indie star is challenging the music industry. Mxmtoon's music first blew up on SoundCloud, then on Instagram, then YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok. Her unfiltered, ukulele-forward songs, from "Seasonal Depression" to "1-800-DATEME" to "I Love Suffering," all speak candidly to the feelings of growing up in the post–flip phone age. She's a harbinger of a new kind of pop fame.

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Avoid drama, unless it's positive and delightful,

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