A former federal investigator probing US government grants for high-risk research in China has found that the US government possibly made double payments for projects at the Wuhan lab in China. The duplicate payments were made through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID), CBS News reported. Diane Cutler, who was hired by Republican Sen. Roger Marshall, reviewed over 50,000 documents before reaching the conclusion.&nbsp;

"What I've found so far is evidence that points to double billing, potential theft of government funds. It is concerning, especially since it involves dangerous pathogens and risky research," Diane said.&nbsp;

Marshall took Diane's report to USAID and the internal watchdog at USAID, leading to a new probe into the matter. Diane says that the US government may have made duplicate payments for things like medical supplies, equipment, travel and salaries. The money could add up to tens of millions of dollars, CBS reported.

A USAID inspector general spokesperson refused to confirm that an investigation into the double billing was currently on. However, the investigation into duplicate billing might take up to six months.&nbsp;

Marshall said the shocking results raise serious concerns for everyone, including the American taxpayers. "I think there are 1.1 million reasons that American taxpayers should care," he said.&nbsp;

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/did-us-scientists-try-to-suppress-covid-19-lab-leak-theory-ex-cdc-chief-claims-so-570228">Did US scientists try to suppress Covid-19 lab-leak theory? Ex-CDC chief claims so</a>

Did COVID-19 leak from the Wuhan lab?

The COVID-19 lab leak theory has been grabbing attention once again ever since fresh reports about its origins started coming out in the past few weeks. First, a report by the US energy department claiming that the COVID-19 virus emerged from a lab leak was presented to the US lawmakers and the White House. &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;

Then Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, acknowledged that COVID-19 "most likely" originated in a "Chinese government-controlled lab". It was the first public confirmation of the FBI's classified judgement of how the pandemic virus emerged. Wray told Fox News that “the FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan.”

Earlier this month, US lawmakers in the House of Representatives voted unanimously for the declassification of US intelligence about the origins of COVID-19.&nbsp;

Later, the former head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that he was sidelined from all investigations and meetings regarding the origins of the virus since his views were not in line with those of other scientists. Dr Robert Redfield said he suspected a lab leak as the most plausible reason, for which other scientists started keeping him out of all meetings.&nbsp;

Dr Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, denied Redfield's allegations. Dr Redfield told &nbsp;a US congressional committee hearing that during several calls with Fauci, WHO chief scientist Jeremy Farrar, and WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, he “expressed as a clinical virologist that I felt it was not scientifically plausible that this virus went from a bat to humans and became one of the most infectious viruses that we have in humans.”

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Fauci tries to tie lab leak to a natural occurrence&nbsp;

Now that the lab leak theory refuses to die down, Fauci also seems to be making a case for himself and the theory while trying to keep his views intact. Earlier this week, Fauci came up with a different definition of a lab leak, tying it to a natural occurrence.&nbsp;

"A lab leak could be that someone was out in the wild may be looking for different types of viruses in bats, got infected, went into a lab, was being studied in a lab, and then came out of the lab. But if that's the definition of lab leak, then that's still a natural occurrence," Fauci said.

Fauci also came up with an alternate definition for the same.

"The other possibility is someone takes a virus from the environment that doesn't actually spread very well in humans, and manipulates it a bit, and accidentally it escapes or accidentally infects someone and then you get an outbreak."

Differences over COVID-19 origins

The US government hasn't been united over what led to the origin of COVID-19. A 2021 report issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence revealed that the National Intelligence Council, along with four other unidentified agencies, in a low-confidence assessment believed that the initial COVID-19 infection “was most likely caused by natural exposure to an animal infected with it or a close progenitor virus.”

So now when several groups have started to back the lab leak theory, things have started to get murkier for top officials involved in the probe. The probe into COVID-19 origins isn't expected to end any time soon and more revelations, such as the double billing, are likely to keep emerging.&nbsp;

But, we might have to make peace with the fact that the actual origins of the coronavirus might never be revealed.

(With inputs from agencies)

&nbsp;

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A former federal investigator probing US government grants for high-risk research in China has found that the US government possibly made double payments for projects at the Wuhan lab in China.

A former federal investigator probing US government grants for high-risk research in China has found that the US government possibly made double payments for projects at the Wuhan lab in China. The duplicate payments were made through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID), CBS News reported. Diane Cutler, who was hired by Republican Sen. Roger Marshall, reviewed over 50,000 documents before reaching the conclusion. "What I've found so far is evidence that points to double billing, potential theft of government funds. It is concerning, especially since it involves dangerous pathogens and risky research," Diane said. Marshall took Diane's report to USAID and the internal watchdog at USAID, leading to a new probe into the matter. Diane says that the US government may have made duplicate payments for things like medical supplies, equipment, travel and salaries. The money could add up to tens of millions of dollars, CBS reported. A USAID inspector general spokesperson refused to confirm that an investigation into the double billing was currently on. However, the investigation into duplicate billing might take up to six months. Marshall said the shocking results raise serious concerns for everyone, including the American taxpayers. "I think there are 1.1 million reasons that American taxpayers should care," he said. Also Read | Did US scientists try to suppress Covid-19 lab-leak theory? Ex-CDC chief claims so Did COVID-19 leak from the Wuhan lab? The COVID-19 lab leak theory has been grabbing attention once again ever since fresh reports about its origins started coming out in the past few weeks. First, a report by the US energy department claiming that the COVID-19 virus emerged from a lab leak was presented to the US lawmakers and the White House. Then Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, acknowledged that COVID-19 "most likely" originated in a "Chinese government-controlled lab". It was the first public confirmation of the FBI's classified judgement of how the pandemic virus emerged. Wray told Fox News that “the FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan.” Earlier this month, US lawmakers in the House of Representatives voted unanimously for the declassification of US intelligence about the origins of COVID-19. Later, the former head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that he was sidelined from all investigations and meetings regarding the origins of the virus since his views were not in line with those of other scientists. Dr Robert Redfield said he suspected a lab leak as the most plausible reason, for which other scientists started keeping him out of all meetings. Dr Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, denied Redfield's allegations. Dr Redfield told a US congressional committee hearing that during several calls with Fauci, WHO chief scientist Jeremy Farrar, and WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, he “expressed as a clinical virologist that I felt it was not scientifically plausible that this virus went from a bat to humans and became one of the most infectious viruses that we have in humans.” × Fauci tries to tie lab leak to a natural occurrence Now that the lab leak theory refuses to die down, Fauci also seems to be making a case for himself and the theory while trying to keep his views intact. Earlier this week, Fauci came up with a different definition of a lab leak, tying it to a natural occurrence. "A lab leak could be that someone was out in the wild may be looking for different types of viruses in bats, got infected, went into a lab, was being studied in a lab, and then came out of the lab. But if that's the definition of lab leak, then that's still a natural occurrence," Fauci said. Fauci also came up with an alternate definition for the same. "The other possibility is someone takes a virus from the environment that doesn't actually spread very well in humans, and manipulates it a bit, and accidentally it escapes or accidentally infects someone and then you get an outbreak." Differences over COVID-19 origins The US government hasn't been united over what led to the origin of COVID-19. A 2021 report issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence revealed that the National Intelligence Council, along with four other unidentified agencies, in a low-confidence assessment believed that the initial COVID-19 infection “was most likely caused by natural exposure to an animal infected with it or a close progenitor virus.” So now when several groups have started to back the lab leak theory, things have started to get murkier for top officials involved in the probe. The probe into COVID-19 origins isn't expected to end any time soon and more revelations, such as the double billing, are likely to keep emerging. But, we might have to make peace with the fact that the actual origins of the coronavirus might never be revealed. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Explained: Was US double-billed for Wuhan research... and Fauci's definition of a lab leak

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday&nbsp;that investigations into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic in&nbsp;China&nbsp;were being hampered by the lack of raw data on the first days of spread there and urged it to be more transparent.

A WHO-led team spent four weeks in and around the central city of Wuhan with Chinese researchers and said in a joint report in March that the virus had probably been transmitted from bats to humans through another animal.

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It said that "introduction through a laboratory incident was considered to be an extremely unlikely pathway", but countries including the United States and some scientists were not satisfied.

"We ask&nbsp;China&nbsp;to be transparent and open and to cooperate," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference on Thursday.

"We owe it to the millions who suffered and the millions who died to know what happened," he said.

China&nbsp;has called the theory that the virus may have escaped from a Wuhan laboratory "absurd" and said repeatedly that "politicizing" the issue will hamper investigations.

German Health Minister Jens Spahn, who held talks with Tedros on Thursday, urged&nbsp;China&nbsp;to enable investigations into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic to continue, saying more information was needed.

Tedros will brief WHO's 194 member states on Friday&nbsp;regarding a proposed second phase of study, WHO's top emergency expert Mike Ryan said.

"We look forward to working with our Chinese counterparts on that process and the director-general will outline measures to member states at a meeting tomorrow, on Friday," he told reporters.

Spahn, who was speaking during a visit to the WHO headquarters in Geneva, also announced a 260 million euro ($307 million) donation to WHO's ACT-Accelerator programme, which aims to ensure the entire world, including poorer countries, receive COVID-19 vaccines and tests.

The UN health agency has been facing intensifying pressure for a new, more in-depth investigation of Covid-19's origins.

The WHO only managed to send a team of independent, international experts to Wuhan in January, more than a year after Covid-19 first surfaced there in late 2019, to help probe the pandemic origins.

But in their long-delayed report published in late March, the international team and their Chinese counterparts drew no firm conclusions, instead ranking a number of hypotheses according to how likely they believed they were.

The report said the virus jumping from bats to humans via an intermediate animal was the most probable scenario, while a theory involving the virus leaking from a laboratory was "extremely unlikely".

The investigation and report have faced criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not evaluating the lab-leak theory more deeply -- a mere 440 words of the report were dedicated to discussing and dismissing it.

Long dismissed as a right-wing conspiracy theory, and vehemently rejected by Beijing, the idea that Covid-19 may have emerged from a lab leak has been gaining increasing momentum in the United States especially.

(With inputs from agencies)

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday that investigations into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic in China were being hampered by the lack of raw data on the first days of spread there and urged it to be more transparent.

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday that investigations into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic in China were being hampered by the lack of raw data on the first days of spread there and urged it to be more transparent. A WHO-led team spent four weeks in and around the central city of Wuhan with Chinese researchers and said in a joint report in March that the virus had probably been transmitted from bats to humans through another animal. It said that "introduction through a laboratory incident was considered to be an extremely unlikely pathway", but countries including the United States and some scientists were not satisfied. "We ask China to be transparent and open and to cooperate," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference on Thursday. "We owe it to the millions who suffered and the millions who died to know what happened," he said. China has called the theory that the virus may have escaped from a Wuhan laboratory "absurd" and said repeatedly that "politicizing" the issue will hamper investigations. German Health Minister Jens Spahn, who held talks with Tedros on Thursday, urged China to enable investigations into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic to continue, saying more information was needed. Tedros will brief WHO's 194 member states on Friday regarding a proposed second phase of study, WHO's top emergency expert Mike Ryan said. "We look forward to working with our Chinese counterparts on that process and the director-general will outline measures to member states at a meeting tomorrow, on Friday," he told reporters. Spahn, who was speaking during a visit to the WHO headquarters in Geneva, also announced a 260 million euro ($307 million) donation to WHO's ACT-Accelerator programme, which aims to ensure the entire world, including poorer countries, receive COVID-19 vaccines and tests. The UN health agency has been facing intensifying pressure for a new, more in-depth investigation of Covid-19's origins. The WHO only managed to send a team of independent, international experts to Wuhan in January, more than a year after Covid-19 first surfaced there in late 2019, to help probe the pandemic origins. But in their long-delayed report published in late March, the international team and their Chinese counterparts drew no firm conclusions, instead ranking a number of hypotheses according to how likely they believed they were. The report said the virus jumping from bats to humans via an intermediate animal was the most probable scenario, while a theory involving the virus leaking from a laboratory was "extremely unlikely". The investigation and report have faced criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not evaluating the lab-leak theory more deeply -- a mere 440 words of the report were dedicated to discussing and dismissing it. Long dismissed as a right-wing conspiracy theory, and vehemently rejected by Beijing, the idea that Covid-19 may have emerged from a lab leak has been gaining increasing momentum in the United States especially. (With inputs from agencies)

WHO says China should provide raw data on pandemic's origins

The origins of COVID-19 have been brought into question again after fresh global interest in enquiries into whether it may have leaked from a lab in Wuhan. Now, a report by a US government national laboratory claims that the lab-leak hypothesis is plausible, urging further investigation into the virus’ origins.

Reported first by the Wall Street Journal, the&nbsp; study was undertaken over the course of May 2020 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. After completion, the study was forwarded to the US State Department during the last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, when interest in the lab-leak theory was starting to brew again.

According to WSJ, the lab based their assessment on the genomic analysis of COVID-19 virus.

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Scientists across the world have now joined the chorus in demanding further enquiry, especially after US President Joe Biden ordered aides to probe the virus’ origins.&nbsp;American agencies posit two scenarios - that the virus leaked from the lab due to a malfunction or that the virus spread among humans after contact with an infected animal. No conclusions have been drawn yet.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/fauci-calls-on-china-to-release-medical-records-of-wuhan-lab-workers-report-389348" hreflang="en">Fauci calls on China to release medical records of Wuhan lab workers: Report</a>

An earlier report by The Wall Street Journal released on Monday alleges that researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology were sick with Covid-like symptoms before the outbreak in November 2019, for which they sought medical care.&nbsp;

US top infectious disease expert Fauci has urged further probe into the virus' origins after coming under the radar for alleged connections with the Wuhan laboratory.

Meanwhile, US officials claim that China has not been transparent about the origins of&nbsp;COVID-19. Beijing has continued to denied this charge, claiming that the virus emerged naturally. On Monday, a World Health Organization official, Mike Ryan said that the agency cannot force China to reveal more details on the origins of the pandemic, but revealed plans to commission further probes into the same.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/fauci-admits-wuhan-lab-received-modest-funds-from-us-amid-calls-for-probe-into-covid-origins-387497" hreflang="en">Fauci admits Wuhan lab received 'modest' funds from US amid calls for probe into Covid origins</a>

The origins of COVID-19 have been brought into question again after fresh global interest in enquiries into whether it may have leaked from a lab in Wuhan. Now, a report by a US government national laboratory claims that the lab-leak hypothesis is plausible, urging further investigation into the virus’ origins.

The origins of COVID-19 have been brought into question again after fresh global interest in enquiries into whether it may have leaked from a lab in Wuhan. Now, a report by a US government national laboratory claims that the lab-leak hypothesis is plausible, urging further investigation into the virus’ origins. Reported first by the Wall Street Journal, the study was undertaken over the course of May 2020 by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. After completion, the study was forwarded to the US State Department during the last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, when interest in the lab-leak theory was starting to brew again. According to WSJ, the lab based their assessment on the genomic analysis of COVID-19 virus. Scientists across the world have now joined the chorus in demanding further enquiry, especially after US President Joe Biden ordered aides to probe the virus’ origins. American agencies posit two scenarios - that the virus leaked from the lab due to a malfunction or that the virus spread among humans after contact with an infected animal. No conclusions have been drawn yet. Also read: Fauci calls on China to release medical records of Wuhan lab workers: Report An earlier report by The Wall Street Journal released on Monday alleges that researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology were sick with Covid-like symptoms before the outbreak in November 2019, for which they sought medical care. US top infectious disease expert Fauci has urged further probe into the virus' origins after coming under the radar for alleged connections with the Wuhan laboratory. Meanwhile, US officials claim that China has not been transparent about the origins of COVID-19. Beijing has continued to denied this charge, claiming that the virus emerged naturally. On Monday, a World Health Organization official, Mike Ryan said that the agency cannot force China to reveal more details on the origins of the pandemic, but revealed plans to commission further probes into the same. Also read: Fauci admits Wuhan lab received 'modest' funds from US amid calls for probe into Covid origins

Coronavirus may have leaked from a lab in Wuhan, US report reveals

A day after President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/president-biden-orders-us-intelligence-to-redouble-efforts-to-collect-information-on-covid-19-origin-387626">Joe Biden</a> ordered US intelligence to probe the origins of coronavirus, President Xi Jinping's regime said the US was attempting to make a "scapegoat" out of China.

Watch:

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"In July 2019, there were respiratory diseases that emerged in northern Virginia for unknown causes and we also saw the Evali outbreak in Wisconsin. Did the US ever share information and data on relevant cases?," the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman&nbsp;Zhao Lijian hit back on Thursday.

His comments came&nbsp;after Biden asked the US intelligence on Wednesday to report back to him on the origins&nbsp;of the virus within 90 days.

In a statement, Biden said he had "asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required including specific questions on China."

"The US keeps talking about wanting China to participate in a full, transparent, scientific evidence-based international investigation. Then we ask the US to follow China's example and immediately start science-based cooperation with the WHO," China's foreign ministry said.

"Their aim is to use the pandemic to pursue stigmatisation, political manipulation and blame shifting," it added.&nbsp;

The Chinese foreign ministry lashed out at the US stating that the US intelligence has a "notorious" track record citing the "test-tube of laundry powder which was cited as the evidence of weapons of mass destruction and the staged white helmets video to launch strikes on Syria."

The foreign ministry, while questioning the credibility of US intelligence, said that the US has turned "a blind eye to facts, science and questionable study of origins" while adding that it has "kept clamouring for additional investigation in China."

The US had earlier called for a "transparent" phase 2 probe of the coronavirus origins study after a US newspaper reported that researchers at the Chinese virology laboratory in Wuhan had fallen ill back in 2019 nearly a month before&nbsp;Chinese authorities&nbsp;reported the first coronavirus case to the WHO.

However, the Chinese foreign ministry denied the report claiming that no one at&nbsp;the Wuhan lab had fallen ill before the outbreak of the virus asserting that the US was "hyping the lab leak theory".

(With inputs from agencies)

 
&nbsp;

A day after President Joe Biden ordered US intelligence to probe the origins of coronavirus, President Xi Jinping's regime said the US was attempting to make a "scapegoat" out of China.

A day after President Joe Biden ordered US intelligence to probe the origins of coronavirus, President Xi Jinping's regime said the US was attempting to make a "scapegoat" out of China. Watch: "In July 2019, there were respiratory diseases that emerged in northern Virginia for unknown causes and we also saw the Evali outbreak in Wisconsin. Did the US ever share information and data on relevant cases?," the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian hit back on Thursday. His comments came after Biden asked the US intelligence on Wednesday to report back to him on the origins of the virus within 90 days. In a statement, Biden said he had "asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required including specific questions on China." "The US keeps talking about wanting China to participate in a full, transparent, scientific evidence-based international investigation. Then we ask the US to follow China's example and immediately start science-based cooperation with the WHO," China's foreign ministry said. "Their aim is to use the pandemic to pursue stigmatisation, political manipulation and blame shifting," it added. The Chinese foreign ministry lashed out at the US stating that the US intelligence has a "notorious" track record citing the "test-tube of laundry powder which was cited as the evidence of weapons of mass destruction and the staged white helmets video to launch strikes on Syria." The foreign ministry, while questioning the credibility of US intelligence, said that the US has turned "a blind eye to facts, science and questionable study of origins" while adding that it has "kept clamouring for additional investigation in China." The US had earlier called for a "transparent" phase 2 probe of the coronavirus origins study after a US newspaper reported that researchers at the Chinese virology laboratory in Wuhan had fallen ill back in 2019 nearly a month before Chinese authorities reported the first coronavirus case to the WHO. However, the Chinese foreign ministry denied the report claiming that no one at the Wuhan lab had fallen ill before the outbreak of the virus asserting that the US was "hyping the lab leak theory". (With inputs from agencies)

Coronavirus lab leak row: US intelligence has a notorious track record, says China

The coronavirus lab leak theory has been&nbsp;gaining more traction, with circumstantial evidence growing about the Wuhan lab.&nbsp;

The outskirts of China could have a link to the Wuhan lab.

According to a report, in April 2012, six miners had fallen ill.&nbsp;They had gone inside a mine in China's Yunnan province and when they came out, they had a pneumonia-like illness and three of them died of the illness.

Watch:

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There is no clarity about the affliction since at that point, their illness was described as mysterious and to solve the mystery, scientists from the Wuhan Institute of Virology were called in.

They conducted their research, took samples from bats in the mine in Yunnan and apparently identified several new coronaviruses in those samples.

But China doesn't want to tell the world about which coronaviruses were found in the Yunnan mine?

Not only has China hidden information, but it has also obstructed the independent investigation. Reports say China has blocked efforts to probe the mine and set up checkpoints near the mine.

Unidentified men have stopped several foreign journalists in recent weeks from trying to go there. While the specifics are not clear, the Wuhan lab is said to have more than a thousand samples of coronaviruses.

There is increasing evidence that the Wuhan lab is linked to the outbreak. Which is why more and more experts say that the lab leak hypothesis must be investigated.

The health secretary of the United States has also called for a second investigation into the origins.

"Phase 2 of the Covid origins study must be launched with terms of reference that are transparent, science-based, and give international experts the independence to fully assess the source of the virus and the early days of the outbreak," US health secretary Xavier Becerra said.&nbsp;

"As member states of the WHO, we need to come together and finish this fight against Covid - our greatest test. We need to fully implement and adhere to obligations under international health regulations. We need to improve transparency, immediately share critical information about outbreaks with pandemic potential, and strengthen health systems to withstand shocks," Becerra added.

There are more connections that need to be explored. For instance, the data that China has about the virus. China has refused to share raw data. The gap is so glaring that even Dr Tedros of the WHO has raised it.

Last year, the WHO director-general was applauding China's response but since March, he has been saying that he's not satisfied with what Beijing has shared and demanded more evidence.

While briefing member states of the World Health Organisation, Dr Tedros said scientists need access to full data to understand what happened in the early days.

Specifically, they need data, including biological samples from at least September 2019. But when Dr Tedros spoke with investigators who went to Wuhan, he was told that they faced difficulties in accessing this data and their report was made without access to the crucial data.

It is the reason why Dr Tedros refused to dismiss the lab theory. He said the assessment by the WHO team wasn't extensive enough.

Therefore, the claims around a lab leak remain limited to circumstantial evidence. And yet, scientists around the world continue to demand another investigation.

They want to further probe the possibility of a lab leak. This month, 18 prominent scientists published a letter calling for a new investigation and they have given reasons why.&nbsp;These scientists believe that the theories both of accidental release from a lab and zoonotic spillover "remain viable".

The letter has been signed by a virologist who had closely worked with Shi Zhengli, who is a top Chinese virologist better known as China's batwoman.

Shi Zhengli was leading the research into bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan lab. Now, one of her colleagues has signed a letter demanding a probe into the lab theory.

A former chief of America's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also called for another probe. Scott Gottlieb believes that the circumstantial evidence so far is credible and there is no new evidence in favour of a natural origin.

He said scientists are yet to find an intermediate host and they haven't found the Wuhan virus in an animal anywhere besides bats.

There are more questions than answers right now, but there is enough evidence for the world to not dismiss the lab leak theory.

A new investigation could help in settling the doubts but China is already pushing back on this demand.&nbsp;

The only way to find the answers is to keep asking the question: Is China hiding something about the Wuhan lab?

The coronavirus lab leak theory has been gaining more traction, with circumstantial evidence growing about the Wuhan lab. The outskirts of China could have a link to the Wuhan lab.

The coronavirus lab leak theory has been gaining more traction, with circumstantial evidence growing about the Wuhan lab. The outskirts of China could have a link to the Wuhan lab. According to a report, in April 2012, six miners had fallen ill. They had gone inside a mine in China's Yunnan province and when they came out, they had a pneumonia-like illness and three of them died of the illness. Watch: There is no clarity about the affliction since at that point, their illness was described as mysterious and to solve the mystery, scientists from the Wuhan Institute of Virology were called in. They conducted their research, took samples from bats in the mine in Yunnan and apparently identified several new coronaviruses in those samples. But China doesn't want to tell the world about which coronaviruses were found in the Yunnan mine? Not only has China hidden information, but it has also obstructed the independent investigation. Reports say China has blocked efforts to probe the mine and set up checkpoints near the mine. Unidentified men have stopped several foreign journalists in recent weeks from trying to go there. While the specifics are not clear, the Wuhan lab is said to have more than a thousand samples of coronaviruses. There is increasing evidence that the Wuhan lab is linked to the outbreak. Which is why more and more experts say that the lab leak hypothesis must be investigated. The health secretary of the United States has also called for a second investigation into the origins. "Phase 2 of the Covid origins study must be launched with terms of reference that are transparent, science-based, and give international experts the independence to fully assess the source of the virus and the early days of the outbreak," US health secretary Xavier Becerra said. "As member states of the WHO, we need to come together and finish this fight against Covid - our greatest test. We need to fully implement and adhere to obligations under international health regulations. We need to improve transparency, immediately share critical information about outbreaks with pandemic potential, and strengthen health systems to withstand shocks," Becerra added. There are more connections that need to be explored. For instance, the data that China has about the virus. China has refused to share raw data. The gap is so glaring that even Dr Tedros of the WHO has raised it. Last year, the WHO director-general was applauding China's response but since March, he has been saying that he's not satisfied with what Beijing has shared and demanded more evidence. While briefing member states of the World Health Organisation, Dr Tedros said scientists need access to full data to understand what happened in the early days. Specifically, they need data, including biological samples from at least September 2019. But when Dr Tedros spoke with investigators who went to Wuhan, he was told that they faced difficulties in accessing this data and their report was made without access to the crucial data. It is the reason why Dr Tedros refused to dismiss the lab theory. He said the assessment by the WHO team wasn't extensive enough. Therefore, the claims around a lab leak remain limited to circumstantial evidence. And yet, scientists around the world continue to demand another investigation. They want to further probe the possibility of a lab leak. This month, 18 prominent scientists published a letter calling for a new investigation and they have given reasons why. These scientists believe that the theories both of accidental release from a lab and zoonotic spillover "remain viable". The letter has been signed by a virologist who had closely worked with Shi Zhengli, who is a top Chinese virologist better known as China's batwoman. Shi Zhengli was leading the research into bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan lab. Now, one of her colleagues has signed a letter demanding a probe into the lab theory. A former chief of America's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also called for another probe. Scott Gottlieb believes that the circumstantial evidence so far is credible and there is no new evidence in favour of a natural origin. He said scientists are yet to find an intermediate host and they haven't found the Wuhan virus in an animal anywhere besides bats. There are more questions than answers right now, but there is enough evidence for the world to not dismiss the lab leak theory. A new investigation could help in settling the doubts but China is already pushing back on this demand. The only way to find the answers is to keep asking the question: Is China hiding something about the Wuhan lab?

Wuhan virus lab leak theory: Why China has blocked access to Yunnan mine

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