COVID-19 More Likely Originated in Chinese Lab Than in Nature: Former CDC Director

All evidence currently available supports the hypothesis that COVID-19 was created in a Chinese lab, Dr. Robert Redfield (ex-Director of U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) told Congressmen on March 8.

“From the earliest days of the pandemic, my view was both theories about the origin of COVID-19 needed to be aggressively and thoroughly examined. Based on my initial analysis of the data, I came to believe—and I still believe today—that it indicates that COVID-19 more likely was the result of an accidental lab leak than a result of a natural spillover event,” Redfield, the CDC director during Trump’s administration, stated in the prepared opening remarks of the House Select Subcommittee for the Coronavirus Pandemic.

“This conclusion is based primarily on the biology of the virus itself, including the rapid high infectivity for human-to-human transmission, which would then predict rapid evolution of new variants as well as a number of other important factors, which also include the unusual actions in and around Wuhan in the fall of 2019, all of which I am happy to discuss today,” Redfield was also added.

Redfield was one among the four individuals who were scheduled Wednesday to testify before the new committee. The Republican-controlled committee is trying to determine where COVID-19 originated.

Although some scientists continue to support natural origin theories, there has not been any evidence that a host animal was found more than two decades after the outbreak. Some experts also claim that there are signs the virus was created.

U.S. intelligence personnel are split over origins. FBI assesses COVID-19, like the Energy Department’s, likely came from the Wuhan laboratory. But, other agencies tend to favor natural origin theories.

Redfield also indicated that he was willing to share his knowledge with the group about the importance of researching origins.

“Even given the information that’s surfaced in the three years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, some have contended that there is really no point in investigating the origins of this virus. I strongly disagree. There is a global need to know what we are dealing with in COVID-19 virus because it affects how we approach the problem to try to prevent the next pandemic,” He wrote this in his opening statement.

Because the current evidence supports the lab origin theory, and because the labs in China were conducting research that increased one or more functions of a virus—known as gain-of-function—there should be a halt to such experiments, Redfield asserted.

“Gain-of-function research has long been controversial within the scientific community, and, in my own opinion, the COVID-19 pandemic presents a case study on the potential dangers of such research. While many believe that gain-of-function research is critical to get ahead of viruses by developing vaccines, in this case, I believe it was the exact opposite, unleashing a new virus on the world without any means of stopping it and resulting in the deaths of millions of people,” He stated.

“Because of this, it is my opinion that we should call for a moratorium on gain-of-function research until we have a broader debate and we come to a consensus as a community about the value of gain-of-function research. This debate should not be limited to the scientific community. If the decision is to continue gain-of-function research then it must be determined how and where to conduct this research in a safe, responsible, and effective way.”

Fauci

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who prompted the drafting A 2020 paper, which was to “disprove” The lab leak theory was denied, and he did not testify. He said that COVID-19 was either a laboratory or nature, during a CNN interview on Tuesday night.

“Whether or not we ever will know, I’m not sure,” He stated. “The one thing is that we have to keep an open mind about this until there’s definitive evidence.”

If there is a laboratory leak, it will be investigated. “you want to be very much more stringent in the controls of the experiments that you allow to be done,” Fauci said. He added, “If nature is the origin of all things, then animal-human interactions should be controlled at wet market places, such as wet marketplaces.”

Fauci said that he will also testify in front of a panel when called. This was similar to what he did during previous Congresses.

An additional witness

Jamie Metzl (senior fellow at The Atlantic Council), another witness, and a self-identified Democrat told Congress on Wednesday that it was crucial to investigate the origins of COVID-19’s devastating effects, which included a death toll of millions.

“It is inconceivable that over three years after this deadly pandemic began, no comprehensive and unfettered investigation into pandemic origins has been carried out nor is one currently planned. Twenty million dead and counting and no comprehensive investigation. This injustice is an insult to every victim of this crisis and a clear threat to future generations,” Metzl stated this in his opening remarks. “There’s a reason we leave no stone unturned when investigating a plane crash. We do it to make flying safer. Similarly, understanding how this pandemic began is essential to prioritizing our response. If, for example, we knew for certain the pandemic stems from a lab incident in Wuhan, I can assure you that efforts to regulate the rapid proliferation of high-containment, and all-too-often high risk, virology labs across the globe would get a massive boost.”

Metzl observed that China’s Communist Party had blocked all attempts to probe the origins of the matter, including the destruction and imprisonment of evidence.

“This hearing must be only the beginning,” He stated. “The most substantial work is ahead of us. We must fully investigate pandemic origins and begin building the national and international norms, systems, and structures to prevent this type of catastrophe from ever happening again.”