Two more US government workers have been confirmed to be victims of invisible attacks in Cuba, the United States said Friday, raising the total to 24.
The tally has inched upward since the US first disclosed in August that embassy workers and their families in Havana had been harmed by unexplained, mysterious incidents affecting their health.
The Trump administration later said it had determined the incidents were "specific attacks" that are ongoing, but investigators have not yet identified a weapon or a culprit.
The disclosure that 24 people have been harmed suggests that nearly half the American government workers serving in Cuba have been attacked.
The US had roughly 50 personnel posted to the Embassy in Havana until earlier this month when, in response to the attacks, the State Department pulled out roughly 60 per cent of the staff.
Yet some of the victims were spouses of US workers, and several were temporary workers who rotated in to Cuba for short-term stints.
State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the two additional victims "do not reflect new attacks."
"The assessments are based on medical evaluations of personnel who were affected by incidents earlier this year," Nauert said.
Nauert said the most recent attack is still believed to have been near the end of August. A US official told The Associated Press previously that attack occurred August 21. The official wasn't authorised to disclose the exact date and requested anonymity.
"Our personnel are receiving comprehensive medical evaluations and care," Nauert said. "We can't rule out additional new cases as medical professionals continue to evaluate members of the embassy community."
The United States "can't rule out additional new cases as medical professionals continue to evaluate members of the embassy community," Nauert added.
The attacks started last year and affected American diplomats, intelligence officials and their spouses in Havana. They began in staffers' homes in Havana, but the AP disclosed in September that they later occurred in hotels as well. The attacks in hotels began after the US complained to President Raul Castro's government, and Cuban security officials dramatically increased patrols around the US workers' homes, officials said.
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