Origins of COVID-19 still unclear according to final report from WHO expert group
An expert group charged by the World Health Organization to investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic started released its final report on Friday, reaching an unsatisfying conclusion: Scientists still aren't sure how the worst health emergency in a century began.
At a news briefing, Marietjie Venter, the group's chair, said that most scientific data supports the hypothesis that the new coronavirus jumped to humans from animals.
That was also the conclusion drawn by the first WHO expert group that investigated the pandemic's origins in 2021, when scientists concluded the virus likely spread from bats to humans, via another intermediary animal. At the time, WHO said a lab leak was "extremely unlikely."
Venter said that after more than three years of work, WHO's expert group was unable to get the necessary data to evaluate whether or not COVID-19 was the result of a lab accident, despite repeated requests for hundreds of genetic sequences and more detailed biosecurity information that were made to the Chinese government.
"Therefore, this hypothesis could not be investigated or excluded," she said. "It was deemed to be very speculative, based on political opinions and not backed up by science."
She said that the 27-member group did not reach a consensus; one member resigned earlier this week and three others asked for their names to be removed from the report.
Venter said there was no evidence to prove that COVID-19 had been manipulated in a lab, nor was there any indication that the virus had been spreading before December 2019 anywhere outside of China.
"Until more scientific data becomes available, the origins of how SARS-CoV-2 entered human populations will remain inconclusive," Venter said, referring to the scientific name for the COVID-19 virus.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it was a "moral imperative" to determine how COVID began, noting that the virus killed at least 20 million people, wiped at least $10 trillion US from the global economy and upended the lives of billions.
Last year, The Associated Press found that the Chinese government froze meaningful domestic and international efforts to trace the virus's origins in the first weeks of the outbreak in 2020 and that WHO itself may have missed early opportunities to investigate how COVID-19 began.
U.S. President Donald Trump has long blamed the emergence of the coronavirus on a laboratory accident in China, while a U.S. intelligence analysis found there was insufficient evidence to prove the theory.
Chinese officials have repeatedly dismissed the idea that the pandemic could have started in a lab, saying that the search for its origins should be conducted in other countries.
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The WHO requested the country share hundreds of genetic sequences from individuals with COVID-19 early in the pandemic, as well as more detailed information about the animals sold at markets in Wuhan, and information on work done and biosafety conditions at laboratories in Wuhan. Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'To date, China has not shared this information either with SAGO or WHO,' a news release says. Marietjie Venter, the chair of the group, said on Friday during a press briefing that without the necessary data, it could not evaluate if the virus was the result of a lab accident. 'Therefore, this hypothesis could not be investigated or excluded,' Venter said. 'It was deemed to be very speculative, based on political opinions and not backed up by science.' Story continues below advertisement That hypothesis is one U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested as the cause, though a U.S. intelligence analysis found there was insufficient evidence to prove the theory. 1:57 WHO says COVID-19 origins still under investigation despite recent reports Two other hypotheses were also provided in the report, the first being the introduction of the virus into animal markets via 'cold chain processes' and subsequent infection in humans through contact with products sold at the market. Venter said no added evidence has become available to support the hypothesis and more data is needed to prove it. The last hypothesis, involving deliberate manipulation of the virus in a laboratory, followed by a biosafety breach, remains unsupported, with Venter noting that SAGO examined the genome structure of the virus and any related publications and reports but found no evidence to support it. All four hypotheses will be re-evaluated if further information becomes available, but Venter said the first related to zoonotic spillover is considered the supported hypothesis. Story continues below advertisement 'Until more scientific data becomes available, the origins of how SARS-CoV-2 entered human populations will remain inconclusive,' she said. Ghebreyesus recognized during the briefing that the task of investigating the cause was difficult, and told reporters that members of SAGO have not all agreed on everything, which is 'to be expected.' He said earlier this week that one member of the team resigned and three others asked for their names to be removed from the report. Ghebreyesus went on to express concerns that China had not provided further information and encouraged it, as well as other governments he said have conducted COVID-19 investigations, to provide this data. Last year, The Associated Press found that the Chinese government had frozen meaningful domestic and international efforts to trace the virus's origins in the first weeks of the outbreak in 2020, and that the WHO may have missed early opportunities to investigate how the pandemic began. Chinese officials have repeatedly dismissed the idea the pandemic could have started in a lab, saying the search should be conducted in other countries. Last September, researchers zeroed in on a short list of animals they think might have spread COVID-19 to humans, including raccoon dogs, civet cats and bamboo rats. — with files from The Associated Press
