The WHO experts have recently quashed one of the most controversial coronavirus conspiracy theories regarding the coronavirus leak from a Chinese laboratory.
Peter Ben Embarek and a team of WHO experts have investigated the matter and concluded that it is highly unlikely that the virus had spread from a laboratory in Wuhan.
After completing a 28-day investigation, the WHO team of experts held a press conference in Wuhan to announce their findings.
Although the expert group did not confirm when, where, and how the virus was transmitted to humans, the press conference conveyed at least two clear messages: the new coronavirus is extremely unlikely to originate from a laboratory, and there is no evidence to show that there was an epidemic in Wuhan before it.
The WHO announcement is in complete contradiction of the Trump Administration’s accusations on China for deliberately hiding the information about the coronavirus pandemic.
The joint research team is composed of 17 Chinese experts and 17 international experts from WHO.
The inspection sites included 9 units in Jinyintan Hospital and South China Seafood Market. A member of the WHO team told the Associated Press that they enjoyed a greater degree of openness than expected and were granted full access to all the places and people.
While addressing the press conference, the head of the WHO team exclaimed that the joint expert team had conducted investigations on the possibility of direct transmission of the new virus from natural hosts, cold chain foods, intermediate hosts, and laboratories.
Based on scientific evaluation, it is believed that the new coronavirus is more likely to infect humans via an intermediate host, or maybe directly transmitted to humans through cold chain food, but it is “unlikely” to be a laboratory leak.
The WHO has warned everyone to be patient before finding a possible answer.
Based on current data, it is impossible to determine how the new coronavirus spread to the South China seafood market.
WHO experts will conduct investigations in more parts of the world, especially the United States, where the epidemic is most severe.
The United States is among the world’s worst-affected countries. There are still more than 86,000 confirmed cases and more than a thousand deaths in a single day.
