Cuba criticizes U.S. Senate hearing on alleged acoustic attacks as unacceptable

HAVANA, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Cuba on Tuesday said a U.S. Senate hearing on alleged "acoustic attacks" on American diplomats in the island nation was unacceptable and only served to impose an accusation without evidence.

The Senate hearing on the investigation of "acoustic attacks" against U.S. diplomats residing in Cuba was criticized by top Cuban diplomat on U.S. affairs as an accusation that Washington hasn't been able to prove.

Josefina Vidal, general director of the United States division of Cuba's Foreign Ministry, said at a press conference that the biggest victim of Tuesday's hearing was the truth.

"U.S. experts haven't been able to identify the cause of the incidents or its perpetrators. However, several U.S. State Department officials repeatedly used the word 'attacks'," she said.

Over 20 U.S. diplomats and their family members in the Caribbean nation suffered symptoms such as hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, headaches and fatigue since the incidents were first reported in November 2016, leading to Washington's claim that Cuba deliberately attacked the personnel.

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, which has partly rolled back a detente with Cuba, sharply reduced the U.S. embassy staff in Havana in response to the incident, and in October expelled 15 Cuban diplomats who worked at the island's embassy in the U.S. capital.

The U.S. administration also decided to stop all consular services, a measure that has been highly unpopular among Cubans. Enditem