WHO Says All Hypotheses Still Open On Covid-19 Origins: 'We Haven't Yet Answered...'
The World Health Organization (WHO) acknowledged that the origins of the Covid pandemic remain inconclusive saying that all hypotheses- including a natural spillover and a laboratory leak- are still on the table. The UN health agency reiterated that a lack of critical data, particularly from China, even four years after the initial outbreak of Covid-19 has hampered efforts to determine how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, first entered the human population. The pandemic has so far claimed an estimated 20 million lives globally.
'Until further requests for information are met, or more scientific data becomes available, the origins of SARS-CoV-2 and how it entered the human population will remain inconclusive," Marietjie Venter, chair of the WHO's Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), said.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that while progress had been made in understanding the virus, determining its origin remained 'a moral imperative" for the millions who lost their lives. He said, 'Over the past five years, we have learned a lot about Covid-19 but there is one crucial question about the pandemic that we have not yet answered: how it started."
China Has Not Shared Data, WHO Director Reveals
The WHO Director revealed that despite repeated requests, China had not shared hundreds of viral sequences from early Covid-19 cases or provided full data on animals sold in Wuhan's wet markets or research conducted at virology labs in the area. He said, 'WHO is also aware of intelligence reports performed by other governments around the world on the origins of Covid-19. We have also requested access to those reports."
'We continue to urge China to share the data that we requested, and to support further studies to investigate the origins of Covid-19," Tedros said.
Lab Leak Theory Not Ruled Out
The first WHO-led team visited Wuhan in early 2021 and concluded in a joint report with Chinese counterparts that the virus most likely spread from bats to humans via an intermediate animal host. Marietjie Venter said that key data needed to assess the lab leak theory had not been made available and thus 'it could not be investigated or excluded."
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First Published:
June 27, 2025, 22:28 IST
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