The World Health Organisation (WHO) has concluded that it is “extremely unlikely” that the source of COVID-19 originated from a laboratory in Wuhan.
Instead, it has been found that it is highly likely that the virus was first transmitted to humans from a bat through an intermediary animal.
Here’s all you need to know about WHO’s latest findings.
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WHO Report Concludes “Extremely Unlikely” That COVID-19 Leaked From Wuhan Lab; Likely Passed From Bats Through Another Animal
An expert mission to Wuhan to determine the source of the coronavirus has produced a highly-anticipated report detailing the findings.
According to the report, the probability that the virus was transmitted directly from bats to humans was “possible to likely”.
The report stated that it was more likely that the virus had first been passed from bats to another animal which then went on to infect humans.
The report stated, “Although the closest related viruses have been found in bats, the evolutionary distance between these bat viruses and Sars-CoV-2 is estimated to be several decades, suggesting a missing link.”
However, it has not been concluded what this “missing link” is, or what this intermediary animal that passed the virus from bats to humans is.
The possibility of transmission through frozen food was not ruled out by the report as the virus seems to be able to survive even at freezing temperatures.
The possibility of a lab leak, on the other hand, was deemed “extremely unlikely” by the report as there had been no record of any virus bearing a resemblance to COVID-19 in any lab before December 2019.
The high levels of safety upheld by Wuhan laboratories were also highlighted.
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The possibility of a lab leak had been raised numerous times by former US President Donald Trump.
His former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had insisted that there was “significant evidence” that the virus came from a laboratory. However, he offered no proof to substantiate such claims.
Other publications such as Le Monde and Wall Street Journal, as well as scientists at Harvard and Stanford, had backed the theory of a lab leak with articles and reports endorsing such a possibility.
Search for Virus Origin Mired in Controversy
China had been criticised for putting off access to scientists to research on the origins of the coronavirus.
Additionally, the release of the report had been delayed numerous times, leading to suspicions that China was attempting to alter findings in order to shake off blame for the pandemic.
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Research was carried out by a team consisting of international and Chinese experts, but the US government has raised questions over whether the experts convened by the WHO were given sufficient access to reach trustworthy conclusions.
Concern was expressed by the US about the “methodology and process” of the report, with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken saying that the Chinese government was involved in the writing of the report.
Feature Image: Martin Janca / Shutterstock.com
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