Joint WHO-China study lists four scenarios for the emergence of the virus
People wait to receive a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine at SSE Arena, which has been converted into a vaccination centre, in Belfast, Northern Ireland on Monday. Pic/AFP
A joint WHO-China study on the origins of COVID-19 says that transmission of the virus from bats to humans through another animal is the most likely scenario and that a lab leak is “extremely unlikely”, according to a draft copy obtained by The Associated Press (AP). The findings offer little new insight into how the virus first emerged and leave many questions unanswered, though that was as expected. But the report does provide more detail on the reasoning behind the researchers’ conclusions. The team proposed further research in every area except the lab leak hypothesis.
The report is being closely watched since discovering the origins of the virus could help scientists prevent future pandemics, but it’s also extremely sensitive since China bristles at any suggestion that it is to blame for the current one. Repeated delays in the report’s release have raised questions about whether the Chinese side was trying to skew its conclusions. “We’ve got real concerns about the methodology and the process that went into that report, including the fact that the government in Beijing apparently helped to write it,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a recent CNN interview. China rejected that criticism on Monday.
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“The US has been speaking out on the report. By doing this, isn’t the US trying to exert political pressure on the members of the WHO expert group?” asked Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian. The report is based largely on a visit by a WHO team of international experts to Wuhan from mid-January to mid-February.
In the draft obtained by the AP, the researchers listed four scenarios in order of likelihood for the emergence of the Coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2. Topping the list was transmission from bats through another animal, which they said was likely to very likely. They evaluated direct spread from bats to humans as likely, and said that spread through “cold-chain” food products was possible but not likely.
Nepal gets 8 lakh doses from China
A day after the Nepal Army received 100,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine from their Indian counterparts as a goodwill gesture, 800,000 doses donated by China arrived in Kathmandu on Monday.
HK to ease COVID restrictions as infections drop
Hong Kong will ease some COVID-19 control measures from leisure facility closures to travel restrictions as new infections have continued to drop and an increasing number of residents have received the vaccine, a top official said here on Monday.
Merkel builds pressure on states to follow rules
German Chancellor Angela Merkel increased pressure on the premiers of the country’s 16 states to stick to an agreed tightening of Coronavirus rules due to rising infection numbers. Speaking on a talk show, Merkel said some states were not following through with a so-called emergency brake, reports dpa news agency.
3,35,024
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours
12,72,89,043
Total no. of cases worldwide
27,85,652
Total no. of deaths worldwide
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