(NewsNation) — Directed Energy Weapons can cause significant damage to humans, but potential countermeasures are being developed to help protect the public, says neuroscientist James Giordano.
Giordano helped investigate “Havana Syndrome” cases in which U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers complained of mysterious debilitating injuries while serving in foreign countries. The incidents spurred debate over whether adversaries were using invisible energy beams, a concept once met with skepticism.
“It’s not fictional, fantasy ray gun stuff. The technology exists, and it exists at a point that can be weaponized,” Giordano told “Katie Pavlich Tonight” on Thursday.
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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth recently disclosed the Pentagon had successfully tested DEWs against drones. Although the new weapons are considered a cost-saving alternative to using missiles, observers worry that, as with drones, the technology could be harnessed by bad actors to devastating effect.
Giordano said there is evidence that DEWs, which can be mounted in backpacks or vehicles, have been used domestically. But he said systems are being developed to detect and neutralize directed energy attacks.
The latter variety would work “by blocking the actual signal in the wave,” Giordano said, while another option is to produce garments that can deflect the energy.
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Also important, he added, is to be able to detect whether a person has been hit with directed energy, “so that individuals can be treated early, promptly and continuously, as needed.”
“The next stage is a larger scale of defense, what we sometimes call ‘left of bang,’” Giordano said. “In other words, what could we do on a global scale to begin to guide, govern, control and regulate these types of weapons?”
He said DEWs may one day be included in treaties that restrict the use of bioweapons.
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