DEW attack in Canneto di Caronia?

[727Sky]

I'm not really trying to 'debunk' this idea, but I can't shake a question.

I can't imagine why on Earth would you test a weapon in this way.  Weapons testing has many potential purpose, measuring energy outputs, judging efficacy, determining ranging and accuracy parameters, targeting drift, efficiency... etc. etc.  They all require specific follow-up measurements and testing.

What the hell purpose does "repeatedly terrorizing a fishing village" at the risk of "revealing an operational DE weapon" serve?

There are plenty of available ranges and open fields, old abandoned towns, fully-equipped and secured sensing facilities... why "apply" it specifically here?

It seems to me that if I associate this phenomenon with DEW testing, I would explore the possibility that these effects were incidental, or at least unintended.

Also, weapons scale comes into question.  Is this actually an independently platformed weapon?

I might entertain that this potential weapon is actually NOT from a major power, but from one of the many "private" military operations that have propagated since the 50's... you know those that a couple of Presidents openly 'warned us' about back then...

You test the weapon on friendlies so you get immediate feed back from them and what is used as local reporting or their version of a  free press. Test it on enemies and possibly never get the details; range test are not real world and not nearly as much fun or as accurate IMO..