Where did the coronavirus come from? FBI chief brings up lab accident theory again
FBI chief brings up lab accident theory again: how likely is that?
A 3D rendering of the coronavirus.
© Source: Uncredited/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/AP/dpa/archive image
Did the coronavirus come from a wildlife market in the Chinese city of Wuhan — or was it released into the environment in a lab accident? There is still no consensus in the professional world. However, the majority of experts consider the wild animal market hypothesis to be more likely.
FBI Director Christopher Wray is now bringing up the lab accident theory again. The Chief of the US Federal Police confirmed in one Interview broadcast by US broadcaster Fox News on Tuesday evening a previous assessment of his authority. “The FBI has long held that the origin of the pandemic is most likely a possible laboratory incident in Wuhan,” Wray told the broadcaster. “This is about a possible leak at a Chinese government-controlled laboratory.”
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No consensus in the US government
FBI Director Wray used the Fox News interview to blame China directly for the spread of the virus. The potential leak at the Chinese government-controlled lab has “killed millions of Americans.” He added that investigations are ongoing and many details are yet to be revealed. However, he wanted to note that the Chinese government had “done its best” to “hinder and cover up” the work of the US government and foreign partners.
According to the latest information from the White House, there is still no unanimous view of the origin of the virus in the US government. Some US authorities remain of the view that the virus was likely transmitted naturally, others are undecided. “Intelligence and the rest of the government are still looking into this,” National Security Council communications director John Kirby said Monday. Previously, the Wall Street Journal published a report on Sundayaccording to which the US Department of Energy is now assuming a laboratory failure – but only with a “low” degree of certainty. China has denied this.
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Origin of the coronavirus: chronology
Since the beginning of the pandemic, various institutions and researchers have been trying to find out the origin of the coronavirus. The following studies have attracted particular attention:
- end of October 2022 some media reported about a study published as a preprint, which had come to the conclusion that the corona virus could have been produced synthetically – i.e. artificially. The German biomedical scientist Valentin Bruttel from the University of Würzburg was also involved in the study. Shortly after the study was published However, the University of Würzburg published a correction, after researchers who were not involved in the study had reviewed it. “All in all, the analyzes presented in the study do not provide any reliable evidence for the authors’ conclusion that SARS-CoV-2 is of synthetic origin. The question of the exact origin of SARS-CoV-2 thus remains unanswered,” the university’s website reads.
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Evolutionary biologist: “Actually, we are the pandemic of this earth”
Zoonoses, i.e. diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans, are occurring more and more frequently and are becoming increasingly dangerous. And humans themselves are to blame for this, says evolutionary biologist Matthias Glaubrecht.
- Mid January 2021 an international team traveled to Wuhan. On behalf of the World Health Organization (WHO), the scientists were to work with Chinese colleagues to reconstruct how the corona virus had spread. However, they did not find the origin of the virus. “From the point of view of the WHO, all hypotheses remain on the table,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement from his organization quoted. In the report one can read that the experts regard a laboratory accident as “extremely unlikely”. Transmission via an intermediate host, such as an animal, is considered “probable to very probable”.
China makes corona studies more difficult
What makes the search for the origin of the trigger of the pandemic more difficult: China is walling. It was only in mid-February that the WHO urged the country to cooperate more closely in the search for the origin of the Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus. The specially established council of independent experts on strategies when searching for the origins of new pathogens (sago) have made clear recommendations for the studies needed in China, said WHO emergency aid coordinator Mike Ryan.
The studies should be carried out by the member countries themselves. The WHO has repeatedly offered support to China and is expecting results. “As long as we don’t have these studies, all hypotheses about the origin of the virus remain on the table,” Ryan said.
RND/saf/dpa
