23 hours ago
Last Updated:December 27, 2024, 11:23 IST
Covid lab leak theory: Intelligence officials excluded the findings from the report which was sent to US President Joe Biden, as per the report.
US President Joe Biden | Reuters Image
FBI reportedly silenced the US defense department and researchers who had evidence supporting the theory that Covid-19 leaked from a Chinese lab. The Post reported that findings were excluded from an August 2021 report which was presented to US President Joe Biden which concluded the virus was “probably not genetically engineered."
What researchers found on Covid lab leak
The origins of Covid-19 were investigated by three scientists—John Hardham, Robert Cutlip, and Jean-Paul Chretien who found that there was a spike protein feature aiding human transmission, mirroring techniques described in a 2008 Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) study. After the virus was sequenced in 2020, a Chinese military researcher applied for a Covid-19 vaccine patent. The researcher later died under mysterious circumstances.
Findings were excluded from report sent to Joe Biden
Intelligence officials excluded the findings from the report which was sent to US President Joe Biden, as per the report, which added that researchers were also barred from sharing their analysis with US Congress and the FBI. A source said as per the report, “The scientists with subject matter expertise were silenced"
Whistleblower Lt. Col. Joseph Murphy revealed that federal grant documents detailing a “blueprint" for engineering viruses like SARS-CoV-2 were improperly classified.
FBI scientist Jason Bannan criticized the lack of transparency, telling The Wall Street Journal, “What ended up on the cutting-room floor needs to be re-examined."
What has China said on the Covid lab leak theory
China, in a joint report with the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2021, said that the virus most likely moved from bats to humans via another animal. Although, US officials suspected that Covid may have leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology where scientists had genetically engineered coronaviruses, as per declassified US government documents.
Location :United States of America (USA)
First Published:December 27, 2024, 11:23 IST
News world FBI ‘Found Covid Was Leaked From China Lab’ But Joe Biden Was Kept In Dark: Report
