Secrecy and cronyism at China's top disease control agency led to widespread test shortages and flaws that hampered the early response to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus">coronavirus</a>&nbsp;outbreak, an&nbsp;investigation has found.

China's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention gave test kit designs and distribution rights exclusively to three then-obscure Shanghai companies with which officials had personal ties, according to the investigation. It was based on interviews with more than 40 doctors, CDC employees, health experts, and industry insiders, as well as hundreds of internal documents, contracts, messages, and emails.

Watch |&nbsp;

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The Shanghai companies GeneoDx Biotech, Huirui Biotechnology, and BioGerm Medical Technology paid the China CDC for the information and the distribution rights, according to two sources with knowledge of the transaction who asked to remain anonymous to avoid retribution. The price: One million RMB ($146,600) each, the sources said. It's unclear whether the money went to specific individuals.

Also see:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/7-killer-viruses-that-emerged-in-china-and-ravaged-the-world-311142">7 killer viruses that emerged in China and ravaged the world</a>

In the meantime, the CDC and its parent agency, the National Health Commission, tried to prevent other scientists and organisations from testing for the virus with their own homemade kits. They took control of patient samples and made testing requirements to confirm&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;cases much more complicated.

The flawed testing system at a time when the virus could have been slowed stopped scientists and officials from seeing how fast it was spreading. Chinese authorities failed to report a single new case between January 5 and 17, even as hundreds were infected in Wuhan, the city where the virus was first detected.

The apparent lull in cases meant officials were slow to take early actions such as warning the public or barring large gatherings. It also caused critical shortages of testing kits, barring access to care for many who were infected.

The testing problems, along with other mistakes and delays, allowed the virus to rip through Wuhan undetected and spread across the world.

China was hardly the only country to grapple with testing. In the US, the CDC declined to use a WHO design and insisted on developing its own kits, which turned out to be faulty and led to even longer delays than in China. Still, the hiccups in China were especially consequential because it was the first country to detect the virus.

Because you have only three companies providing testing kits, it kept the capacity of testing very limited, said Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations. It was a major problem that led to a rapid increase in cases and deaths. China's foreign ministry and China's top medical agency, the National Health Commission, did not respond to requests for comment.

But interviews and documents suggest that a culture of backdoor connections quietly flourished in a top-down, underfunded public health system. Though none of the first three diagnostics companies tapped to make test kits were well-known in the industry, there were extensive ties between the companies and top China CDC researchers.

The founder of BioGerm, Zhao Baihui, was the former chief technician of the Shanghai CDC's microbiology lab. Emails and financial records obtained by the AP show that Zhao first started BioGerm's predecessor through an intermediary in 2012, while she was still at the Shanghai CDC. In the next five years, she sold thousands of dollars' worth of test kits to her own work through the intermediary. After quitting the CDC in 2017, Zhao went on to spearhead lucrative contracts with Shanghai officials.

Another of the three companies, GeneoDx, enjoyed special access because it is a subsidiary of the state-run firm SinoPharm, which is managed directly by China's cabinet. In October 2019, GeneoDx co-organized an internal CDC training conference on emerging respiratory diseases in Shanghai.

Tan Wenjie, the CDC official who ran the training, was later put in charge of developing test kits.

GeneoDx did not respond to requests for comment or interviews. The National Health Commission did not respond to a request for a comment or an interview with Tan.

The last company, Huirui, is a longtime partner with Tan, the CDC official in charge of test kits. In an interview, CEO Li Hui said the CDC routinely contracted his company to make emergency testing chemicals. He denied any personal relationship with Tan or any payments to the CDC.

We've been working with the CDC to respond to emerging new diseases for about ten years, not just for a day or two, it's normal, Li said.

It's unclear whether the agreements between the China CDC and the three test kit companies violated Chinese law.

They raise questions around potential violations of bribery laws, along with rules against abuse of authority, self-dealing and conflicts of interest, said James Zimmerman, a Beijing-based corporate attorney and former chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China.

But other experts caution that the state may have designated the three companies to make test kits under special laws on the procurement of emergency goods during natural disasters.

Things will be different in the middle of a crisis, said Lesli Ligorner, a Beijing-based attorney specializing in anti-corruption law. I wouldn't be so quick to rush to judgment. The first step in making test kits is to get samples of the virus and decode its genetic sequence. This leads to test designs, essentially a recipe for the tests.

Secrecy and cronyism at China's top disease control agency led to widespread test shortages and flaws that hampered the early response to the coronavirus outbreak, an investigation has found.

Secrecy and cronyism at China's top disease control agency led to widespread test shortages and flaws that hampered the early response to the coronavirus outbreak, an investigation has found. China's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention gave test kit designs and distribution rights exclusively to three then-obscure Shanghai companies with which officials had personal ties, according to the investigation. It was based on interviews with more than 40 doctors, CDC employees, health experts, and industry insiders, as well as hundreds of internal documents, contracts, messages, and emails. Watch | The Shanghai companies GeneoDx Biotech, Huirui Biotechnology, and BioGerm Medical Technology paid the China CDC for the information and the distribution rights, according to two sources with knowledge of the transaction who asked to remain anonymous to avoid retribution. The price: One million RMB ($146,600) each, the sources said. It's unclear whether the money went to specific individuals. Also see: 7 killer viruses that emerged in China and ravaged the world In the meantime, the CDC and its parent agency, the National Health Commission, tried to prevent other scientists and organisations from testing for the virus with their own homemade kits. They took control of patient samples and made testing requirements to confirm coronavirus cases much more complicated. The flawed testing system at a time when the virus could have been slowed stopped scientists and officials from seeing how fast it was spreading. Chinese authorities failed to report a single new case between January 5 and 17, even as hundreds were infected in Wuhan, the city where the virus was first detected. The apparent lull in cases meant officials were slow to take early actions such as warning the public or barring large gatherings. It also caused critical shortages of testing kits, barring access to care for many who were infected. The testing problems, along with other mistakes and delays, allowed the virus to rip through Wuhan undetected and spread across the world. China was hardly the only country to grapple with testing. In the US, the CDC declined to use a WHO design and insisted on developing its own kits, which turned out to be faulty and led to even longer delays than in China. Still, the hiccups in China were especially consequential because it was the first country to detect the virus. Because you have only three companies providing testing kits, it kept the capacity of testing very limited, said Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations. It was a major problem that led to a rapid increase in cases and deaths. China's foreign ministry and China's top medical agency, the National Health Commission, did not respond to requests for comment. But interviews and documents suggest that a culture of backdoor connections quietly flourished in a top-down, underfunded public health system. Though none of the first three diagnostics companies tapped to make test kits were well-known in the industry, there were extensive ties between the companies and top China CDC researchers. The founder of BioGerm, Zhao Baihui, was the former chief technician of the Shanghai CDC's microbiology lab. Emails and financial records obtained by the AP show that Zhao first started BioGerm's predecessor through an intermediary in 2012, while she was still at the Shanghai CDC. In the next five years, she sold thousands of dollars' worth of test kits to her own work through the intermediary. After quitting the CDC in 2017, Zhao went on to spearhead lucrative contracts with Shanghai officials. Another of the three companies, GeneoDx, enjoyed special access because it is a subsidiary of the state-run firm SinoPharm, which is managed directly by China's cabinet. In October 2019, GeneoDx co-organized an internal CDC training conference on emerging respiratory diseases in Shanghai. Tan Wenjie, the CDC official who ran the training, was later put in charge of developing test kits. GeneoDx did not respond to requests for comment or interviews. The National Health Commission did not respond to a request for a comment or an interview with Tan. The last company, Huirui, is a longtime partner with Tan, the CDC official in charge of test kits. In an interview, CEO Li Hui said the CDC routinely contracted his company to make emergency testing chemicals. He denied any personal relationship with Tan or any payments to the CDC. We've been working with the CDC to respond to emerging new diseases for about ten years, not just for a day or two, it's normal, Li said. It's unclear whether the agreements between the China CDC and the three test kit companies violated Chinese law. They raise questions around potential violations of bribery laws, along with rules against abuse of authority, self-dealing and conflicts of interest, said James Zimmerman, a Beijing-based corporate attorney and former chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China. But other experts caution that the state may have designated the three companies to make test kits under special laws on the procurement of emergency goods during natural disasters. Things will be different in the middle of a crisis, said Lesli Ligorner, a Beijing-based attorney specializing in anti-corruption law. I wouldn't be so quick to rush to judgment. The first step in making test kits is to get samples of the virus and decode its genetic sequence. This leads to test designs, essentially a recipe for the tests.

Investigation reveals serious flaws in coronavirus testing, corrupt deals in China

11 months Since the Wuhan virus breached China's borders, incriminating documents have been leaked from the Hubei Centre for Disease Control. The documents reveal how an undisclosed influenza was spreading at the same time as COVID-19. Molly Gambhir gets you the leaked Wuhan files.

Gravitas: The Wuhan files leak

China has claimed that just because the first COVID-19 case was detected from the Wuhan doesn't mean that it originated from the Chinese city itself. China's state media has also started reporting that traces of the virus were found on the number of imported food products from different countries including India.

China claims, COVID-19 virus originated outside the country

Since the coronavirus cases emerged in Wuhan in December last year before turning into a global pandemic with the worldwide death toll crossing over 1.4 million.

China questions virus origin ahead of W.H.O probe

The Wuhan is still taking lives. Burial grounds are being expanded in Jakarta. And after Europe, South Asia may be the next region to face a second wave.

Gravitas: No end to the Wuhan Virus Pandemic

The deadly Wuhan virus is still taking lives, burial ground are growing and in South Asia there is a threat of a second wave. Here’s a report.

The threat of Wuhan virus is far from over

The Wuhan virus crisis is far from nearing its end as it continues to kill people across the world.

In Indonesia's capital, a burial ground is being expanded to accommodate the rising numbers of Wuhan virus victims. The expanse is a haunting reminder of the number of people the virus has killed, how it has separated so many families from their loved ones and how it has brought the world to a standstill.

Over 16,000 people have succumbed to the Wuhan virus in Indonesia. Nearly 6,000 thousand kilometres from Jakarta, Pakistan too is struggling to cope with the crisis as hospitals have got inundated with cases rising.

On November 25, Pakistan recorded its highest daily spike in four months as over 3,000 people tested positive. So far, the country has lost over 5,000 people to the virus. At least 356,000 have fallen ill with the virus.&nbsp;

The situation is grim in India too. On November 24, India saw its highest single-day increase in active cases since October 1. The fresh infections outnumbered the recoveries. So far, over 130,000 people have succumbed to the Wuhan virus in India with the total number of cases crossing 9 million as orders for reopening schools have been reversed.

As India enters the wedding season, authorities have imposed caps on the guest list. In South Asia, after the Wuhan virus brought life to a standstill, the fear of a second wave is looming large.

The Wuhan virus crisis is far from nearing its end as it continues to kill people across the world. In Indonesia's capital, a burial ground is being expanded to accommodate the rising numbers of Wuhan virus victims.

The Wuhan virus crisis is far from nearing its end as it continues to kill people across the world. In Indonesia's capital, a burial ground is being expanded to accommodate the rising numbers of Wuhan virus victims. The expanse is a haunting reminder of the number of people the virus has killed, how it has separated so many families from their loved ones and how it has brought the world to a standstill. Over 16,000 people have succumbed to the Wuhan virus in Indonesia. Nearly 6,000 thousand kilometres from Jakarta, Pakistan too is struggling to cope with the crisis as hospitals have got inundated with cases rising. On November 25, Pakistan recorded its highest daily spike in four months as over 3,000 people tested positive. So far, the country has lost over 5,000 people to the virus. At least 356,000 have fallen ill with the virus. The situation is grim in India too. On November 24, India saw its highest single-day increase in active cases since October 1. The fresh infections outnumbered the recoveries. So far, over 130,000 people have succumbed to the Wuhan virus in India with the total number of cases crossing 9 million as orders for reopening schools have been reversed. As India enters the wedding season, authorities have imposed caps on the guest list. In South Asia, after the Wuhan virus brought life to a standstill, the fear of a second wave is looming large.

Coronavirus continues to ravage Pakistan & South Asia

The W.H.O still cannot decide how the pandemic began. In July, the health body initiated a probe into the origins of the Wuhan Virus. How far has that probe gone? WION's Molly Gambhir gets you a report.

Gravitas: W.H.O's sham probe into COVID-19 origins

Chinese authorities said today that they found detected <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/does-plasma-therapy-help-coronavirus-patients-this-study-reveals-shocking-results-345179">coronavirus</a> in imported beef and seafood.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/who-china-to-allow-international-experts-to-probe-covid-19-origin-345095/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

China’s Centre for Disease Control and customs officials claimed that exterior packages and inside containers had the virus. The authorities on Tuesday had moved swiftly to ban frozen shrimp from an Ecuadorian company.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/shanghai-tackles-coronavirus-outbreak-hundreds-of-flights-cancelled-345195">Also Read:&nbsp;Shanghai tackles coronavirus outbreak, hundreds of flights cancelled</a>

China had earlier linked a local COVID-19 outbreak to a wholesale food market outside Beijing. Chinese health officials had earlier targeted two cold-chain storage workers in Tianjin for being infected with coronavirus.

China has undertaken mass-testing campaigns after reports of coronavirus traces on imported food and packaging. Authorities had said earlier reportedly detected the virus on frozen beef from Brazil.

The latest development comes as China's meat imports have increased over 70 per cent this year. However, the World Health Organization said that "there is currently no evidence that people can catch COVID-19 from food or food packaging".&nbsp;

China earlier claimed that the initial source of coronavirus outbreak was possibly from outside however it was disputed by several countries including the US and Australia even as the WHO has started investigation on the origin of the virus in China.

The Chinese foreign ministry had earlier floated a conspiracy theory that the American military may have brought the virus to Wuhan.

Chinese authorities said today that they found detected coronavirus in imported beef and seafood. Watch: China’s Centre for Disease Control and customs officials claimed that exterior packages and inside containers had the virus.

Chinese authorities said today that they found detected coronavirus in imported beef and seafood. Watch: China’s Centre for Disease Control and customs officials claimed that exterior packages and inside containers had the virus. The authorities on Tuesday had moved swiftly to ban frozen shrimp from an Ecuadorian company. Also Read: Shanghai tackles coronavirus outbreak, hundreds of flights cancelled China had earlier linked a local COVID-19 outbreak to a wholesale food market outside Beijing. Chinese health officials had earlier targeted two cold-chain storage workers in Tianjin for being infected with coronavirus. China has undertaken mass-testing campaigns after reports of coronavirus traces on imported food and packaging. Authorities had said earlier reportedly detected the virus on frozen beef from Brazil. The latest development comes as China's meat imports have increased over 70 per cent this year. However, the World Health Organization said that "there is currently no evidence that people can catch COVID-19 from food or food packaging". China earlier claimed that the initial source of coronavirus outbreak was possibly from outside however it was disputed by several countries including the US and Australia even as the WHO has started investigation on the origin of the virus in China. The Chinese foreign ministry had earlier floated a conspiracy theory that the American military may have brought the virus to Wuhan.

Chinese authorities say they found virus in imported beef and seafood

The threat from the Wuhan Virus is growing. The Interpol has warned that people may be deliberately contaminating letters and other surfaces. An episode in Shanghai has also highlighted the growing risk of the virus.

Gravitas: Growing risk of the Wuhan virus

Last week, Denmark decided to cull all its mink. Up to 17 million mink are being culled because of the spread of the Wuhan Virus. WION's Palki Sharma tells you more.

Gravitas: Covid scare: Denmark shaken by mink culling

Taiwan is on a record-extending 200-day streak. Since April 12, the country has not reported a single case of locally transmitted COVID-19. While different countries are battling a second wave, how is Taiwan keeping the pandemic at bay? WION's Palki Sharma gets you a report.

Gravitas: Taiwan's 200-day streak without local transmission

The coronavirus pandemic upended Pamela Walsh’s life. It shut down her office, leaving her working at home from a folding table. It forced her to turn her dining room into a Zoom classroom for her 7-year-old son. And the virus propelled a still more unlikely change: It led Walsh to run for public office.

“It wasn’t even on my radar screen,” said Walsh, 47, a political adviser in Concord, New Hampshire, who has long worked for Democrats but never before considered seeking elective office herself. Months of supervising elementary school lessons from home, with little idea of when her son would return to school, convinced Walsh that she should vie for a seat on her local school board.

“I decided I needed a voice like mine on the board,” Walsh said in a phone interview, which she muted periodically as her son called out for her and at one point thumped a bat on a chair. “Everyone is struggling right now a bit and needs to be represented by how these policies impact real families.”

By some measure, all politics is virus politics in 2020, and the federal government’s handling of COVID-19 has become an explosive issue in the presidential race, which has been further complicated by President Donald Trump’s own hospitalization for the virus.

Yet around the nation, there are local and state races in which the pandemic has also taken an outsize role. In some cases, the virus has been the reason for running; in others, handling of the pandemic has become the defining issue, eclipsing ordinary matters of taxes and services.

The virus — and the government’s response to it — has inspired parents, hair salon owners and others to run for the first time, turned sleepy races into competitive matches and injected a level of unpredictability and rancor into normally tranquil down-ballot contests.

“This is an issue that no one expected to be one of the pillars of this election, but it has clearly become one,” said Robert Griffin, research director for the Democracy Fund Voter Study Group, which is partnering with academics at UCLA to poll about 6,000 Americans each week leading up to the election.

Trump’s own bout with COVID-19 only intensified some of the debates over the issue in lower races. “If you, Mr. President, have the best health system in the world and bodyguards and the whole thing, and you still get it, what does that say for us at the local level who are trying to figure out what to do with our children?” asked José Luis Bedolla, 50, who said he was motivated to run for the school board in Berkeley, California, because of the pandemic.

Candidates’ own cases of the virus have created all sorts of uncertainty for political races, yanking campaigns off the trail and into quarantine during crucial weeks and confounding political strategists, who have little precedent to lean on as they try to figure out how voters will respond.

In North Carolina, a race that could help decide control of the U.S. Senate was thrust further into limbo this month when Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican, tested positive for the coronavirus after attending a White House ceremony. At the same time, his opponent, Cal Cunningham, is contending with a texting scandal.

In Missouri, where average new daily cases have risen sixfold since mid-June, the governor’s race is being defined in no small part by the pandemic. Gov. Mike Parson, the incumbent Republican who is leading in the polls, had resisted requiring people to wear masks and at times campaigned without one. Then last month, he came down with the virus himself.

As Parson was sidelined, his Democratic opponent, Nicole Galloway, wished him well while also soliciting donations in an effort to remind voters of their dueling positions on the virus. An online ad showed her wearing a blue mask, side-by-side with a barefaced Parson.

“Gov. Parson has failed this test, and it’s apparent,” Galloway said in an interview. An accountant by training and the current state auditor, she has made public health a key issue in Zoom appearances, uses elbow bumps on the campaign trail and has said she will issue a mask requirement if elected.

Elsewhere, conservatives have made their opposition to mandates on masks and business closings the center of blossoming campaigns.

In Washington state, a small-town police chief has made Gov. Jay Inslee’s handling of the pandemic a top issue in a long-shot bid to become the state’s first Republican governor since the 1980s. The chief, Loren Culp, has criticized Inslee, a Democrat, as a “job killer” and is drawing a contrast by holding rallies where masks are not required.

 
In Texas, a salon owner who was jailed this spring for defying shutdown orders quickly became an anti-lockdown hero for the political right. The owner, Shelley Luther, spoke at rallies, gave Sen. Ted Cruz a haircut and donned a T-shirt emblazoned with the popular Texas rallying cry “Come and Take It” — except in place of a cannon, there was a blow dryer.

Now Luther, a former high school teacher who has never held public office, is running as a Republican for a seat in the Texas state Senate.

She has put Gov. Greg Abbott’s handling of the pandemic and his virus-related restrictions at the forefront of her campaign. The outrage over her jailing was so intense that Abbott, a fellow Republican, softened his own shutdown orders and removed confinement as a punishment.

Running in a largely rural Republican district northwest of Dallas, Luther has called Abbott “our tyrant governor” at campaign events. One of her ads showed the black-and-white security footage of the moment she was handcuffed as she looks into the camera and says, “I fought back, and they backed down.”

“It’s about time that we the people take this back into our hands and let the government know that they work for us and they should not be telling us what to do like this,” Luther said last month on the talk show “America, Can We Talk?”

And then there was this wrinkle: Her main opponent, a Republican lawmaker, state Rep. Drew Springer, was sidelined for days during the race; he had to quarantine after his wife tested positive for the virus. Luther won 164 more votes than Springer during a recent special election, and the two are now in a runoff set for December to represent Prosper, Texas, a Dallas suburb that is one of the fastest-growing areas in the state.

Restrictions to control the spread of the virus — or the lack of such restrictions — have become motivating factors in races of all sizes.

Adrian Perkins, the mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana, had no plans — and no money — to run for U.S. Senate at the start of this year. But he grew increasingly frustrated as the coronavirus swept through his city, sickening thousands and leaving many others unemployed. He tried ordering everyone to wear masks but got sued for that.

So Perkins, a 34-year-old Army veteran and Harvard Law School graduate, began a last-minute, long-shot bid to go to Washington, where he felt he could have more sway. He announced his candidacy in July, two days before the registration deadline.

“No sane person launches a Senate campaign on purpose with just 110 days,” said Perkins, a Democrat who is running to unseat Bill Cassidy, the senior Republican senator from Louisiana. (Cassidy, a medical doctor, tested positive and recovered from the coronavirus this summer.)

Perkins’ campaign said he has raised $1 million in just a few months, but his odds are long. His opponent, who already had more than $6 million on hand by the time Perkins entered the race, has a solid lead in a mostly red state.

But the long shot is worth it to Perkins, who grew up in Shreveport and described the federal government’s missteps in response to the pandemic as the reason for his campaign.

“Without the coronavirus, I wouldn’t be running,” he said, adding, “It’s people’s lives that were on the line.”

The coronavirus pandemic upended Pamela Walsh’s life. It shut down her office, leaving her working at home from a folding table. It forced her to turn her dining room into a Zoom classroom for her 7-year-old son.

The coronavirus pandemic upended Pamela Walsh’s life. It shut down her office, leaving her working at home from a folding table. It forced her to turn her dining room into a Zoom classroom for her 7-year-old son. And the virus propelled a still more unlikely change: It led Walsh to run for public office. “It wasn’t even on my radar screen,” said Walsh, 47, a political adviser in Concord, New Hampshire, who has long worked for Democrats but never before considered seeking elective office herself. Months of supervising elementary school lessons from home, with little idea of when her son would return to school, convinced Walsh that she should vie for a seat on her local school board. “I decided I needed a voice like mine on the board,” Walsh said in a phone interview, which she muted periodically as her son called out for her and at one point thumped a bat on a chair. “Everyone is struggling right now a bit and needs to be represented by how these policies impact real families.” By some measure, all politics is virus politics in 2020, and the federal government’s handling of COVID-19 has become an explosive issue in the presidential race, which has been further complicated by President Donald Trump’s own hospitalization for the virus. Yet around the nation, there are local and state races in which the pandemic has also taken an outsize role. In some cases, the virus has been the reason for running; in others, handling of the pandemic has become the defining issue, eclipsing ordinary matters of taxes and services. The virus — and the government’s response to it — has inspired parents, hair salon owners and others to run for the first time, turned sleepy races into competitive matches and injected a level of unpredictability and rancor into normally tranquil down-ballot contests. “This is an issue that no one expected to be one of the pillars of this election, but it has clearly become one,” said Robert Griffin, research director for the Democracy Fund Voter Study Group, which is partnering with academics at UCLA to poll about 6,000 Americans each week leading up to the election. Trump’s own bout with COVID-19 only intensified some of the debates over the issue in lower races. “If you, Mr. President, have the best health system in the world and bodyguards and the whole thing, and you still get it, what does that say for us at the local level who are trying to figure out what to do with our children?” asked José Luis Bedolla, 50, who said he was motivated to run for the school board in Berkeley, California, because of the pandemic. Candidates’ own cases of the virus have created all sorts of uncertainty for political races, yanking campaigns off the trail and into quarantine during crucial weeks and confounding political strategists, who have little precedent to lean on as they try to figure out how voters will respond. In North Carolina, a race that could help decide control of the U.S. Senate was thrust further into limbo this month when Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican, tested positive for the coronavirus after attending a White House ceremony. At the same time, his opponent, Cal Cunningham, is contending with a texting scandal. In Missouri, where average new daily cases have risen sixfold since mid-June, the governor’s race is being defined in no small part by the pandemic. Gov. Mike Parson, the incumbent Republican who is leading in the polls, had resisted requiring people to wear masks and at times campaigned without one. Then last month, he came down with the virus himself. As Parson was sidelined, his Democratic opponent, Nicole Galloway, wished him well while also soliciting donations in an effort to remind voters of their dueling positions on the virus. An online ad showed her wearing a blue mask, side-by-side with a barefaced Parson. “Gov. Parson has failed this test, and it’s apparent,” Galloway said in an interview. An accountant by training and the current state auditor, she has made public health a key issue in Zoom appearances, uses elbow bumps on the campaign trail and has said she will issue a mask requirement if elected. Elsewhere, conservatives have made their opposition to mandates on masks and business closings the center of blossoming campaigns. In Washington state, a small-town police chief has made Gov. Jay Inslee’s handling of the pandemic a top issue in a long-shot bid to become the state’s first Republican governor since the 1980s. The chief, Loren Culp, has criticized Inslee, a Democrat, as a “job killer” and is drawing a contrast by holding rallies where masks are not required. In Texas, a salon owner who was jailed this spring for defying shutdown orders quickly became an anti-lockdown hero for the political right. The owner, Shelley Luther, spoke at rallies, gave Sen. Ted Cruz a haircut and donned a T-shirt emblazoned with the popular Texas rallying cry “Come and Take It” — except in place of a cannon, there was a blow dryer. Now Luther, a former high school teacher who has never held public office, is running as a Republican for a seat in the Texas state Senate. She has put Gov. Greg Abbott’s handling of the pandemic and his virus-related restrictions at the forefront of her campaign. The outrage over her jailing was so intense that Abbott, a fellow Republican, softened his own shutdown orders and removed confinement as a punishment. Running in a largely rural Republican district northwest of Dallas, Luther has called Abbott “our tyrant governor” at campaign events. One of her ads showed the black-and-white security footage of the moment she was handcuffed as she looks into the camera and says, “I fought back, and they backed down.” “It’s about time that we the people take this back into our hands and let the government know that they work for us and they should not be telling us what to do like this,” Luther said last month on the talk show “America, Can We Talk?” And then there was this wrinkle: Her main opponent, a Republican lawmaker, state Rep. Drew Springer, was sidelined for days during the race; he had to quarantine after his wife tested positive for the virus. Luther won 164 more votes than Springer during a recent special election, and the two are now in a runoff set for December to represent Prosper, Texas, a Dallas suburb that is one of the fastest-growing areas in the state. Restrictions to control the spread of the virus — or the lack of such restrictions — have become motivating factors in races of all sizes. Adrian Perkins, the mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana, had no plans — and no money — to run for U.S. Senate at the start of this year. But he grew increasingly frustrated as the coronavirus swept through his city, sickening thousands and leaving many others unemployed. He tried ordering everyone to wear masks but got sued for that. So Perkins, a 34-year-old Army veteran and Harvard Law School graduate, began a last-minute, long-shot bid to go to Washington, where he felt he could have more sway. He announced his candidacy in July, two days before the registration deadline. “No sane person launches a Senate campaign on purpose with just 110 days,” said Perkins, a Democrat who is running to unseat Bill Cassidy, the senior Republican senator from Louisiana. (Cassidy, a medical doctor, tested positive and recovered from the coronavirus this summer.) Perkins’ campaign said he has raised $1 million in just a few months, but his odds are long. His opponent, who already had more than $6 million on hand by the time Perkins entered the race, has a solid lead in a mostly red state. But the long shot is worth it to Perkins, who grew up in Shreveport and described the federal government’s missteps in response to the pandemic as the reason for his campaign. “Without the coronavirus, I wouldn’t be running,” he said, adding, “It’s people’s lives that were on the line.”

From school boards to the Senate, all politics is virus politics in 2020

Dr Li-Meng Yan, a virologist from China who claims that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab "dared" Facebook to discuss "point-to-point in a live broadcast" based on her reports on the lab-origin of the virus by the Chinese regime.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-censors-wion-after-interview-with-chinese-virologist-dr-li-meng-yan-who-claimed-covid-19-is-lab-manufactured-334832">Also Read:&nbsp;Facebook censors WION after interview with Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan</a>

In her study, Yan had said: "SARS-CoV-2 is a product of laboratory modification, which can be created in approximately six months using a template virus owned by a laboratory of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA)."

Watch:

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"The scale and the coordinated nature of this scientific fraud signifies the degree of corruption in the fields of academic research and public health. As a result of such corruption, damages have been made both to the reputation of the scientific community and to the well-being of the global community."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Since when could Facebook judge the validity of scientific evidence? 
 
Dare anyone represent Facebook to discuss with me point-to-point in a live broadcast, based on my two reports on the lab-origin of COVID-19 by CCP regime? 
 
Why is Facebook so scared of the facts of COVID-19? <a href="https://t.co/zPU9nE3GBN">https://t.co/zPU9nE3GBN</a>
— Dr. Li-Meng YAN (@DrLiMengYAN1) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrLiMengYAN1/status/1316152016499027968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"Importantly, while SARS-CoV-2 meets the criteria of a bioweapon specified by the PLA, its impact is well beyond what is conceived for a typical bioweapon," Dr Yan asserted.

The Chinese virologist took aim at Facebook, asking the social media giant "why it so scared of the facts of COVID-19?"

Facebook had earlier censured WION over Dr Li-Meng Yan's interview. However, the issue was resolved later.

"Since when could Facebook judge the validity of scientific evidence? Dr Yan asked. Last month, the scientific community had rejected her claims, however, Dr Li-Meng Yan said the Chinese Communist Party was trying to muzzle her voice.

Dr Li-Meng Yan, a virologist from China who claims that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab "dared" Facebook to discuss "point-to-point in a live broadcast" based on her reports on the lab-origin of the virus by the Chinese regime.

Dr Li-Meng Yan, a virologist from China who claims that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab "dared" Facebook to discuss "point-to-point in a live broadcast" based on her reports on the lab-origin of the virus by the Chinese regime. Also Read: Facebook censors WION after interview with Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan In her study, Yan had said: "SARS-CoV-2 is a product of laboratory modification, which can be created in approximately six months using a template virus owned by a laboratory of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA)." Watch: "The scale and the coordinated nature of this scientific fraud signifies the degree of corruption in the fields of academic research and public health. As a result of such corruption, damages have been made both to the reputation of the scientific community and to the well-being of the global community." Since when could Facebook judge the validity of scientific evidence? Dare anyone represent Facebook to discuss with me point-to-point in a live broadcast, based on my two reports on the lab-origin of COVID-19 by CCP regime? Why is Facebook so scared of the facts of COVID-19? https://t.co/zPU9nE3GBN — Dr. Li-Meng YAN (@DrLiMengYAN1) October 13, 2020 × "Importantly, while SARS-CoV-2 meets the criteria of a bioweapon specified by the PLA, its impact is well beyond what is conceived for a typical bioweapon," Dr Yan asserted. The Chinese virologist took aim at Facebook, asking the social media giant "why it so scared of the facts of COVID-19?" Facebook had earlier censured WION over Dr Li-Meng Yan's interview. However, the issue was resolved later. "Since when could Facebook judge the validity of scientific evidence? Dr Yan asked. Last month, the scientific community had rejected her claims, however, Dr Li-Meng Yan said the Chinese Communist Party was trying to muzzle her voice.

Dr Li-Meng Yan, virologist who claims COVID-19 manufactured in China lab challenges Facebook

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Communist Party supported by some Western scientists and a politically-motivated media have desperately tried to convince the world that the COVID-19 virus originated as a bat beta-coronavirus which underwent a natural mutation process and was then acquired by humans after exposure to infected animals.

Undoubtedly, such subterfuge is meant to protect certain vested interests, including the potentially devastating political and economic consequences for China, global corporate and private investment in China and a negative effect on scientific collaboration and research funding of major Western research laboratories.

In her first article, “Unusual Features of the SARS-CoV-2 Genome Suggesting Sophisticated Laboratory Modification Rather Than Natural Evolution and Delineation of Its Probable Synthetic Route,” Chinese scientist and whistleblower, Dr. Li-Meng Yan presented the biological evidence demonstrating that the COVID-19 virus was made in a laboratory.

Now, Dr. Yan has published her second scientific article “SARS-CoV-2 Is an Unrestricted Bioweapon: A Truth Revealed through Uncovering a Large-Scale, Organized Scientific Fraud,” which describes the extraordinary lengths the Chinese Communist Party has gone to cover-up the true laboratory origin of the COVID-19 virus in order to escape responsibility for the pandemic.

For months after the start of the outbreak, China flooded the scientific literature with subtle and sometimes not so subtle messages supporting its narrative that COVID-19 is a naturally-occurring disease that “jumped” from animals to humans in the Wuhan seafood market.

After endless media reports and scientific studies, the theory that the Wuhan seafood market was the source for animal–human COVID-19 transmission was totally discredited, even by the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

On February 3, 2020, “batwoman” Dr. Zheng-Li Shi of the Wuhan Institute of Virology published an article suggesting that COVID-19 originated in bats and a bat coronavirus named RaTG13 was shown to be 96.2% identical to the COVID-19 virus, thus supporting the naturally-occurring theory.

Since then, literally hundreds of scientific articles have used RaTG13 as a basis for investigating the natural origin of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the fact that RaTG13 exists only on paper because no live virus or intact genome of RaTG13 have ever been isolated or recovered. 
Dr. Yan and her colleagues now make multiple arguments indicating that RaTG13 is a fabricated virus.

One way to determine if a virus is related to or evolved from another virus, in this case, RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus, is to compare the synonymous and non-synonymous mutations in the genetic code.

The DNA genetic code, which is composed of combinations of the nucleotides guanine, adenine, cytosine and thymine (G, A, C and T), determines the structure of proteins. It does so through groups of three nucleotides called codons that correspond to specific amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, and that code is redundant.

For example, the amino acid arginine can be produced by codons CGT, CGA, CTC or CGG, meaning the third nucleotide in the codon is redundant or interchangeable and will still code for arginine. Any change in the first or second nucleotide will produce a different amino acid.

So, a viral genetic code can mutate, but still produce the same amino acid or a “synonymous” outcome. A mutation in the first or second nucleotide in a codon will result in different amino acid, a “non-synonymous” outcome.

In the absence of a major natural or artificial recombinant event, viruses that are naturally related or evolve from each other, as claimed for RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus, have roughly standard ratios comparing synonymous and non-synonymous mutations.

Dr. Yan’s data show that when the ratios of synonymous and non-synonymous mutations between a critical segment of the RaTG13 and COVID-19 viruses are compared, the result “is abnormal and a violation of the principles of natural evolution.”

The interpretation is that RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus could not be related to each other through natural evolution and that RaTG13 is a likely fabrication.

In addition, a reconstructed RaTG13 receptor binding domain does not bind to the angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptors in two species of horseshoe bats, implying that RaTG13 could not exist in a bat population from which it would mutate and infect humans, completely undermining the naturally-occurring theory.

Dr. Yan also questions the accuracy of China’s pangolin (scaly anteater) coronavirus data upon which dozens of scientific studies examining potential natural coronavirus recombination events are based.

In early June, another novel bat coronavirus, RmYN02, which shares a 93.3% sequence similarity to the COVID-19 virus, was identified and used to support the Communist Chinese Party’s argument that the pandemic was a natural outbreak.

In that weak attempt to buttress the naturally-occurring theory, the Chinese authors of the RmYN02 article claim that a proline-alanine-alanine (PAA) amino acid insertion represents an ancestor to the proline-arginine-arginine-alanine (PRRA) furin polybasic cleavage site found in the COVID-19 virus, but not found in any other related bat coronavirus.

The presence of the furin polybasic cleavage site is a marker for genetic manipulation and, therefore, countering that fact would be an important objective of the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda machine.&nbsp;

The RmYN02 hypothesis disintegrates under scrutiny because the PAA sequence is chemically neutral, not basic and it could not cleave anything.

RmYN02 does not even possess the arginine-serine (R-S) cleavage point found in the COVID-19 virus and all related coronaviruses and the published RmYH02 sequence seems to be out of alignment.

Dr. Yan’s second scientific article adds one more nail in the coffin of China’s false theory that the COVID-19 pandemic was naturally-occurring.

(Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D. is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, who previously worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and conducted basic and clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. His email address is lawrence.sellin@gmail.com)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.) 
&nbsp;

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Communist Party supported by some Western scientists and a politically-motivated media have desperately tried to convince the world that the COVID-19 virus originated as a bat beta-coronavirus which underwent a natural mutation process and was then acquired by humans after exposure to infected animals.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Communist Party supported by some Western scientists and a politically-motivated media have desperately tried to convince the world that the COVID-19 virus originated as a bat beta-coronavirus which underwent a natural mutation process and was then acquired by humans after exposure to infected animals. Undoubtedly, such subterfuge is meant to protect certain vested interests, including the potentially devastating political and economic consequences for China, global corporate and private investment in China and a negative effect on scientific collaboration and research funding of major Western research laboratories. In her first article, “Unusual Features of the SARS-CoV-2 Genome Suggesting Sophisticated Laboratory Modification Rather Than Natural Evolution and Delineation of Its Probable Synthetic Route,” Chinese scientist and whistleblower, Dr. Li-Meng Yan presented the biological evidence demonstrating that the COVID-19 virus was made in a laboratory. Now, Dr. Yan has published her second scientific article “SARS-CoV-2 Is an Unrestricted Bioweapon: A Truth Revealed through Uncovering a Large-Scale, Organized Scientific Fraud,” which describes the extraordinary lengths the Chinese Communist Party has gone to cover-up the true laboratory origin of the COVID-19 virus in order to escape responsibility for the pandemic. For months after the start of the outbreak, China flooded the scientific literature with subtle and sometimes not so subtle messages supporting its narrative that COVID-19 is a naturally-occurring disease that “jumped” from animals to humans in the Wuhan seafood market. After endless media reports and scientific studies, the theory that the Wuhan seafood market was the source for animal–human COVID-19 transmission was totally discredited, even by the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On February 3, 2020, “batwoman” Dr. Zheng-Li Shi of the Wuhan Institute of Virology published an article suggesting that COVID-19 originated in bats and a bat coronavirus named RaTG13 was shown to be 96.2% identical to the COVID-19 virus, thus supporting the naturally-occurring theory. Since then, literally hundreds of scientific articles have used RaTG13 as a basis for investigating the natural origin of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the fact that RaTG13 exists only on paper because no live virus or intact genome of RaTG13 have ever been isolated or recovered. Dr. Yan and her colleagues now make multiple arguments indicating that RaTG13 is a fabricated virus. One way to determine if a virus is related to or evolved from another virus, in this case, RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus, is to compare the synonymous and non-synonymous mutations in the genetic code. The DNA genetic code, which is composed of combinations of the nucleotides guanine, adenine, cytosine and thymine (G, A, C and T), determines the structure of proteins. It does so through groups of three nucleotides called codons that correspond to specific amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, and that code is redundant. For example, the amino acid arginine can be produced by codons CGT, CGA, CTC or CGG, meaning the third nucleotide in the codon is redundant or interchangeable and will still code for arginine. Any change in the first or second nucleotide will produce a different amino acid. So, a viral genetic code can mutate, but still produce the same amino acid or a “synonymous” outcome. A mutation in the first or second nucleotide in a codon will result in different amino acid, a “non-synonymous” outcome. In the absence of a major natural or artificial recombinant event, viruses that are naturally related or evolve from each other, as claimed for RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus, have roughly standard ratios comparing synonymous and non-synonymous mutations. Dr. Yan’s data show that when the ratios of synonymous and non-synonymous mutations between a critical segment of the RaTG13 and COVID-19 viruses are compared, the result “is abnormal and a violation of the principles of natural evolution.” The interpretation is that RaTG13 and the COVID-19 virus could not be related to each other through natural evolution and that RaTG13 is a likely fabrication. In addition, a reconstructed RaTG13 receptor binding domain does not bind to the angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptors in two species of horseshoe bats, implying that RaTG13 could not exist in a bat population from which it would mutate and infect humans, completely undermining the naturally-occurring theory. Dr. Yan also questions the accuracy of China’s pangolin (scaly anteater) coronavirus data upon which dozens of scientific studies examining potential natural coronavirus recombination events are based. In early June, another novel bat coronavirus, RmYN02, which shares a 93.3% sequence similarity to the COVID-19 virus, was identified and used to support the Communist Chinese Party’s argument that the pandemic was a natural outbreak. In that weak attempt to buttress the naturally-occurring theory, the Chinese authors of the RmYN02 article claim that a proline-alanine-alanine (PAA) amino acid insertion represents an ancestor to the proline-arginine-arginine-alanine (PRRA) furin polybasic cleavage site found in the COVID-19 virus, but not found in any other related bat coronavirus. The presence of the furin polybasic cleavage site is a marker for genetic manipulation and, therefore, countering that fact would be an important objective of the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda machine. The RmYN02 hypothesis disintegrates under scrutiny because the PAA sequence is chemically neutral, not basic and it could not cleave anything. RmYN02 does not even possess the arginine-serine (R-S) cleavage point found in the COVID-19 virus and all related coronaviruses and the published RmYH02 sequence seems to be out of alignment. Dr. Yan’s second scientific article adds one more nail in the coffin of China’s false theory that the COVID-19 pandemic was naturally-occurring. (Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D. is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, who previously worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and conducted basic and clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. His email address is lawrence.sellin@gmail.com) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Chinese virologist reveals China’s fake science and the COVID-19 cover-up

10 months into 2020 - and there is no respite from the Wuhan Virus. As more countries reimpose movement restrictions and lockdowns - China is celebrating, traveling, and repressing Hong Kong. WION's Palki has the details.

Gravitas: China is celebrating in the middle of the Pandemic

After beating the coronavirus outbreak in China,&nbsp;hundreds of millions in China hustled to enjoy their first major national holiday&nbsp;with massive influx of travellers across country.

The Golden Week holiday marks the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and sees an astonishing annual movement of people trying to get home or take holidays.

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But this year has added significance, with the crowds filling the concourses pointing to a country rebounding from the outbreak and parading the freedom to travel as a contrast to the rolling lockdowns hitting much of the world.

State broadcaster CCTV showed footage of train stations in Guangzhou and Shanghai completely packed to the brim with people.

Based on estimates by the Chinese government, up to 108 million railway trips would be made by travellers during this festive period from September 28 to October 8, state media reported.

Domestic travel has sprung back to life and given the economy a boost after the virus shuttered businesses and scared away tourists following its emergence in Wuhan late last year.

Wuhan in central China is back in business too, with visitors thronging to the Yellow Crane Tower, a Taoist shrine, according to the country's biggest travel agency Ctrip.

Mainland&nbsp;China&nbsp;reported 12 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, all imported from overseas, down from 19 a day earlier, according to the country's health authority.

Much-needed spending

More than 600 million trips will be taken during the holiday, down 20 percent from a year ago, Ctrip estimated, but they will still force the state railway to lay on 1,000 extra trains a day.

Around 108 million passengers will take trains during the eight-day holidays, around 13.5 million a day.

They are likely to bring much-needed spending to far-flung parts of China, last year, travellers spent $9.5 billion during the Golden Week.

At Beijing's Capital Airport — whose check-in rows and aisles were empty in February, thousands of passengers queued up with their luggage and children in tow.

Life in the Chinese capital has gradually returned to normal after ghostly scenes of empty roads in January and February, and a second virus outbreak in June.

The once eerily empty streets in the city's financial district are packed, previously deserted malls are full of shoppers and ice rinks have filled with children learning to skate again.

Chinese retail sales edged back to growth in August for the first time since the pandemic struck, signalling a rebound for the world's second-largest economy.

After beating the coronavirus outbreak in China, hundreds of millions in China hustled to enjoy their first major national holiday with massive influx of travellers across country.

After beating the coronavirus outbreak in China, hundreds of millions in China hustled to enjoy their first major national holiday with massive influx of travellers across country. The Golden Week holiday marks the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and sees an astonishing annual movement of people trying to get home or take holidays. But this year has added significance, with the crowds filling the concourses pointing to a country rebounding from the outbreak and parading the freedom to travel as a contrast to the rolling lockdowns hitting much of the world. State broadcaster CCTV showed footage of train stations in Guangzhou and Shanghai completely packed to the brim with people. Based on estimates by the Chinese government, up to 108 million railway trips would be made by travellers during this festive period from September 28 to October 8, state media reported. Domestic travel has sprung back to life and given the economy a boost after the virus shuttered businesses and scared away tourists following its emergence in Wuhan late last year. Wuhan in central China is back in business too, with visitors thronging to the Yellow Crane Tower, a Taoist shrine, according to the country's biggest travel agency Ctrip. Mainland China reported 12 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, all imported from overseas, down from 19 a day earlier, according to the country's health authority. Much-needed spending More than 600 million trips will be taken during the holiday, down 20 percent from a year ago, Ctrip estimated, but they will still force the state railway to lay on 1,000 extra trains a day. Around 108 million passengers will take trains during the eight-day holidays, around 13.5 million a day. They are likely to bring much-needed spending to far-flung parts of China, last year, travellers spent $9.5 billion during the Golden Week. At Beijing's Capital Airport — whose check-in rows and aisles were empty in February, thousands of passengers queued up with their luggage and children in tow. Life in the Chinese capital has gradually returned to normal after ghostly scenes of empty roads in January and February, and a second virus outbreak in June. The once eerily empty streets in the city's financial district are packed, previously deserted malls are full of shoppers and ice rinks have filled with children learning to skate again. Chinese retail sales edged back to growth in August for the first time since the pandemic struck, signalling a rebound for the world's second-largest economy.

After curbing COVID-19, China kicks off 'golden week' national holiday

The world is desperate for a vaccine for the Wuhan virus and there is not one yet but Chinese citizens are set to get a jab.&nbsp;

First, the workers of state-owned companies will receive a jab, teachers, supermarket employees and more will also get a shot.

However, China's vaccines are not approved. Earlier this month, China showed off the vaccines to the world. It was a move to build global hype, by displaying the vials Beijing wanted to send a message - China has the ultimate cure to the Wuhan virus. The Communist Party wants a head start in the global vaccine race even when the Chinese vaccines haven't received a stamp of approval from the world.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-china-is-giving-unproven-vaccines-to-thousands-of-citizens-331283/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

China is inoculating its own population. Chinese citizens are the guinea pigs in one of the largest human trials in the world. First, employees of state-owned companies were given the vaccine, now China is expanding its program administering it to teachers, supermarket employees and people travelling to risky areas abroad being injected.

Two objectives could be driving Beijing, the Communist Party is eager to show China as a superpower in science and by winning the vaccine race, China would be able to deflect some of the criticism over the cover-up in Wuhan.

So China is injecting its own citizens, it is even offering the vaccine to the rest of the world. Chinese officials are promising more vaccines and one billion doses by next year but experts have been raising serious doubts over China's vaccine program. No other country has injected so many people with an unproven vaccine. The number of people who have already received a shot is not clear.

No one knows whether China is even tracking them to check for any harmful side effects. There is fear that Chinese vaccines could have harmful side effects or encourage behaviour that could lead to more infections but China seems to be putting politics above science.

The local government of Shaoyang city in the Zhejiang province issued a message for local officials asking them to look for more people who could be given the vaccine. On the list of potential candidates were people in schools, kindergartens and nursing homes. China's moves are dangerous, this desperation to win the vaccine race could upend the global efforts to find a cure for the Wuhan virus.

The world is desperate for a vaccine for the Wuhan virus and there is not one yet but Chinese citizens are set to get a jab. First, the workers of state-owned companies will receive a jab, teachers, supermarket employees and more will also get a shot.

The world is desperate for a vaccine for the Wuhan virus and there is not one yet but Chinese citizens are set to get a jab. First, the workers of state-owned companies will receive a jab, teachers, supermarket employees and more will also get a shot. However, China's vaccines are not approved. Earlier this month, China showed off the vaccines to the world. It was a move to build global hype, by displaying the vials Beijing wanted to send a message - China has the ultimate cure to the Wuhan virus. The Communist Party wants a head start in the global vaccine race even when the Chinese vaccines haven't received a stamp of approval from the world. China is inoculating its own population. Chinese citizens are the guinea pigs in one of the largest human trials in the world. First, employees of state-owned companies were given the vaccine, now China is expanding its program administering it to teachers, supermarket employees and people travelling to risky areas abroad being injected. Two objectives could be driving Beijing, the Communist Party is eager to show China as a superpower in science and by winning the vaccine race, China would be able to deflect some of the criticism over the cover-up in Wuhan. So China is injecting its own citizens, it is even offering the vaccine to the rest of the world. Chinese officials are promising more vaccines and one billion doses by next year but experts have been raising serious doubts over China's vaccine program. No other country has injected so many people with an unproven vaccine. The number of people who have already received a shot is not clear. No one knows whether China is even tracking them to check for any harmful side effects. There is fear that Chinese vaccines could have harmful side effects or encourage behaviour that could lead to more infections but China seems to be putting politics above science. The local government of Shaoyang city in the Zhejiang province issued a message for local officials asking them to look for more people who could be given the vaccine. On the list of potential candidates were people in schools, kindergartens and nursing homes. China's moves are dangerous, this desperation to win the vaccine race could upend the global efforts to find a cure for the Wuhan virus.

How China's unapproved COVID-19 vaccine drive is putting citizens at risk

Voters in Romania decided to re-elect a mayor - who recently passed away after contracting the Wuhan virus. Why? WION's Palki brings you the story.

Gravitas: Romanian Village Elects Dead Mayor

The Wuhan virus has killed over 1 million people. It has pushed numerous countries into recession and snatched the livelihoods of people across the world. Who will compensate for all of this? WION's Palki Sharma argues it's time to #MakeChinaPay.

Gravitas: Wuhan Virus Pandemic, Why China must pay for damages

The Wuhan Virus is spreading. The pandemic is far from over. Why? 1. Easing restrictions is exposing more people to the virus 2. No herd immunity 3. No vaccines or effective treatments. WION's Palki Sharma tells you why you shouldn't let your guard down.

Gravitas: Wuhan virus: Why the pandemic is far from over

While the whole world is still scrambling to control the coronavirus outbreak, life has returned to normal in China's Wuhan, which was the first epicenter of the Coronavirus outbreak. Watch report.

COVID-19 Pandemic: Crowded streets in Wuhan during rush hour

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned against the perils of a "clash of civilisations" in a speech defending his country's diplomatic direction delivered to the UN on Tuesday.&nbsp;

"China has no intention of entering a Cold War," he said in a speech framed by the coronavirus and tensions with the US, urging the world to avoid "falling into the trap of a clash of civilisations."

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/wion-exclusive-chinese-virologist-beijing-tried-to-cover-up-wuhan-virus-and-who-is-very-much-part-of-it-chinese-virologist-dr-li-meng-yan-329467" hreflang="en">WION exclusive | Beijing tried to cover-up Wuhan virus and WHO is very much part of it: Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan</a>

Jinping also hit back at US President Donald Trump by saying that the ''world must not 'politicise' fight against coronavirus'' after Trump&nbsp;accused Beijing of allowing the COVID-19 to "infect the world."

Tensions have soared between the United States and China in recent months, with President Donald Trump blaming Beijing for the Covid-19 pandemic that has claimed some 950,000 lives around the world and cast a shadow over his re-election bid.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/un-must-hold-china-accountable-for-coronavirus-says-donald-trump-329472" hreflang="en">UN must 'hold China accountable' for coronavirus, says Donald Trump</a>

Earlier, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres&nbsp;kicked off the six-day General Debate, and urged the world to prevent a Cold War between the United States and China and halt conflicts so it can focus on the Covid-19 pandemic.&nbsp;

Despite this year's United Nations General Assembly General Debate being a mostly virtual event, there was a heavy presence of New York City Police officers in front of the UN&nbsp;building.

The annual meeting of world leaders at the United Nations,&nbsp;started&nbsp;on Tuesday&nbsp;with no presidents or prime ministers physically present in New York, because of the world-wide coronavirus pandemic. All statements have been pre-recorded and will be broadcast in the General Assembly hall.

The United Nations was created when countries came together after World War II to prevent conflict.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned against the perils of a "clash of civilisations" in a speech defending his country's diplomatic direction delivered to the UN on Tuesday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned against the perils of a "clash of civilisations" in a speech defending his country's diplomatic direction delivered to the UN on Tuesday. "China has no intention of entering a Cold War," he said in a speech framed by the coronavirus and tensions with the US, urging the world to avoid "falling into the trap of a clash of civilisations." Also read| WION exclusive | Beijing tried to cover-up Wuhan virus and WHO is very much part of it: Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan Jinping also hit back at US President Donald Trump by saying that the ''world must not 'politicise' fight against coronavirus'' after Trump accused Beijing of allowing the COVID-19 to "infect the world." Tensions have soared between the United States and China in recent months, with President Donald Trump blaming Beijing for the Covid-19 pandemic that has claimed some 950,000 lives around the world and cast a shadow over his re-election bid. Also read: UN must 'hold China accountable' for coronavirus, says Donald Trump Earlier, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres kicked off the six-day General Debate, and urged the world to prevent a Cold War between the United States and China and halt conflicts so it can focus on the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite this year's United Nations General Assembly General Debate being a mostly virtual event, there was a heavy presence of New York City Police officers in front of the UN building. The annual meeting of world leaders at the United Nations, started on Tuesday with no presidents or prime ministers physically present in New York, because of the world-wide coronavirus pandemic. All statements have been pre-recorded and will be broadcast in the General Assembly hall. The United Nations was created when countries came together after World War II to prevent conflict.

UNGA 2020: Xi Jinping warns against 'clash of civilisations'

In an exclusive conversation with WION, Dr Li-Meng Yan, who recently broke the internet by claiming that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab, said that on the course of her research, she was told not to talk about her discoveries.

When asked whether the Chinese government knew what was going on, and whether President Xi was involved in the cover-up, and hiding the number of cases in Wuhan, the doctor said “Yes, and also people who knew the situation, were told to be silent”.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/wion-exclusive-chinese-virologist-beijing-tried-to-cover-up-wuhan-virus-and-who-is-very-much-part-of-it-chinese-virologist-dr-li-meng-yan-329467" hreflang="en">WION exclusive | Beijing tried to cover-up Wuhan virus and WHO is very much part of it: Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan</a>

“Because, even from December 31, I tried to reach to the doctors in Wuhan, and they are [sic] scared”. They were told, “Don’t talk about it, and simply wear a mask”.

In mid-January, my supervisor told me “Be careful while you do the investigation. Don’t cross the red line. If not, I will be in trouble, and I will be disappeared [sic]”, the virologist added.

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Dr Li-Meng Yan told WION that she was muzzled by her supervisor for speaking out, and that China turned social media against her. Recently, her Twitter account was suspended.

On being asked whether she thought Chinese government could influence studies and research on COVID-19, the doctor said “Of course”.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinese-virologist-wion-exclusive-chinese-communist-partys-money-and-power-influence-whole-world-says-virologist-dr-li-meng-yan-329489" hreflang="en">WION Exclusive | 'Chinese Communist Party's money and power influence whole world', says virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan</a>

“I had been there for many years… I knew many many people across a vast network - hospitals, institutes”, she said. “I worked in Hong Kong for many years”, she added.

“All my experience and knowledge can tell you - Chinese Communist Party’s money and power influence the whole world, far more beyond your imagination”, she added.

“This virus come from a lab on purpose”, Yan added.

Earlier on September 14, Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan had claimed that COVID-19 was made in a Wuhan laboratory. Yan, who was associated with the Hong Kong School of Public Health, had been researching on the coronavirus for a long time. The Chinese virologist claimed that during her research she came across that coronavirus was developed in a laboratory in China.

In an exclusive conversation with WION, Dr Li-Meng Yan, who recently broke the internet by claiming that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab, said that on the course of her research, she was told not to talk about her discoveries.

In an exclusive conversation with WION, Dr Li-Meng Yan, who recently broke the internet by claiming that COVID-19 was manufactured in a lab, said that on the course of her research, she was told not to talk about her discoveries. When asked whether the Chinese government knew what was going on, and whether President Xi was involved in the cover-up, and hiding the number of cases in Wuhan, the doctor said “Yes, and also people who knew the situation, were told to be silent”. Also read: WION exclusive | Beijing tried to cover-up Wuhan virus and WHO is very much part of it: Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan “Because, even from December 31, I tried to reach to the doctors in Wuhan, and they are [sic] scared”. They were told, “Don’t talk about it, and simply wear a mask”. In mid-January, my supervisor told me “Be careful while you do the investigation. Don’t cross the red line. If not, I will be in trouble, and I will be disappeared [sic]”, the virologist added. #WuhanWhistleblowerOnWION | Chinese virologist Li-Meng Yan speaks to WION's @palkisu https://t.co/99KKjbJnBv — WION (@WIONews) September 22, 2020 × Dr Li-Meng Yan told WION that she was muzzled by her supervisor for speaking out, and that China turned social media against her. Recently, her Twitter account was suspended. On being asked whether she thought Chinese government could influence studies and research on COVID-19, the doctor said “Of course”. Also read: WION Exclusive | 'Chinese Communist Party's money and power influence whole world', says virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan “I had been there for many years… I knew many many people across a vast network - hospitals, institutes”, she said. “I worked in Hong Kong for many years”, she added. “All my experience and knowledge can tell you - Chinese Communist Party’s money and power influence the whole world, far more beyond your imagination”, she added. “This virus come from a lab on purpose”, Yan added. Earlier on September 14, Chinese virologist Dr Li-Meng Yan had claimed that COVID-19 was made in a Wuhan laboratory. Yan, who was associated with the Hong Kong School of Public Health, had been researching on the coronavirus for a long time. The Chinese virologist claimed that during her research she came across that coronavirus was developed in a laboratory in China.

WION exclusive | Chinese virologist who claimed COVID-19 is lab-made suggests Wuhan doctors were forced into silence

A blueprint for the laboratory construction of a highly infectious and deadly coronavirus has long existed.&nbsp;

It was only a matter of time before a scientific group lacking moral constraints would attempt it, initiating a global catastrophe and paving the way for something even more dangerous in the future, unless action is taken now to prevent it.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Communist Party, supported by some Western scientists and a politically-motivated media have desperately tried to convince the world that SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible, originated as a bat beta-coronavirus, which underwent a natural mutation process and was then acquired by humans after exposure to infected animals.

Yet, after more than nine months and hundreds of scientific studies, no one is near to identifying the naturally-occurring source of SARS-CoV-2.

Part of the difficulty resides in the fact that SARS-CoV-2 has unique structural features that appear to contribute to its high infectivity and pathogenicity for which there are no obvious evolutionary pathways.

Even in the earliest known cases, the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2 seemed to have been already highly adapted to infect humans via the angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptor found in lungs, kidneys, intestines and blood vessels.

Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 contains a furin polybasic cleavage site with an amino acid sequence of proline-arginine-arginine-alanine or PRRA that facilitates membrane fusion between the virus and the human cell, a structure that is not found in any other related bat coronavirus.

In contrast, the bioengineering capabilities to “splice” the receptor-binding domain from one virus to another and to artificially insert a furin polybasic cleavage site are both well-established laboratory techniques used globally for over ten years.

All the basic procedures required to synthesize a virus like SARS-CoV-2 were described in a single scientific publication entitled “Mechanisms of Zoonotic Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Host Range Expansion in Human Airway Epithelium,” which appeared in the Journal of Virology in March, 2008.

The construction of new viruses capable of infecting humans began by using, as a viral “backbone,” SARS-CoV-1, the coronavirus responsible for the 2002-2003 pandemic.

The spike protein of the SARS-CoV-1 backbone, which contains the receptor-binding domain, was artificially replaced with the spike protein from another coronavirus.

The new spike protein underwent additional genetic manipulation by single amino acid substitution in a manner roughly equivalent to inserting a furin polybasic cleavage site.

Using a process called serial passaging, the new artificial virus was then exposed to human airway epithelial cell cultures (lung surface cells), where two new viruses were created, both of which were adapted for human infection and were capable of being neutralized with human monoclonal antibodies.

Needless to say, the genetic engineering and serial passaging techniques of today are far more advanced and far more widespread than they were twelve years ago.

It is entirely feasible that SARS-CoV-2 was created in a similar way.

Clearly, it is in the geopolitical interest of the Chinese Communist Party to deflect responsibility for the pandemic by promoting the narrative, both in the scientific literature and the mainstream media, that COVID-19 is just another naturally-occurring disease transmission from animals to humans.

That effort has been advanced by China’s refusal to fully disclose the information it possesses and conducting a politically-motivated scientific misinformation campaign.

Unfortunately, China’s actions seem to be buttressed by certain elements within the Western scientific community that may have interests in the outcome beyond an objective analysis of the data.

Given all the available information, the likelihood that the unique structural features of SARS-CoV-2 are the result of a natural evolutionary process is very small.

It is far more likely that China manufactured SARS-CoV-2 and, though a combination of hubris, incompetence and recklessness, unleashed it on the world.

(Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D. is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, who previously worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and conducted basic and clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. His email address is lawrence.sellin@gmail.com.)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

 
&nbsp;

A blueprint for the laboratory construction of a highly infectious and deadly coronavirus has long existed. It was only a matter of time before a scientific group lacking moral constraints would attempt it, initiating a global catastrophe and paving the way for something even more dangerous in the future, unless action is taken now to prevent it.

A blueprint for the laboratory construction of a highly infectious and deadly coronavirus has long existed. It was only a matter of time before a scientific group lacking moral constraints would attempt it, initiating a global catastrophe and paving the way for something even more dangerous in the future, unless action is taken now to prevent it. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Communist Party, supported by some Western scientists and a politically-motivated media have desperately tried to convince the world that SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible, originated as a bat beta-coronavirus, which underwent a natural mutation process and was then acquired by humans after exposure to infected animals. Yet, after more than nine months and hundreds of scientific studies, no one is near to identifying the naturally-occurring source of SARS-CoV-2. Part of the difficulty resides in the fact that SARS-CoV-2 has unique structural features that appear to contribute to its high infectivity and pathogenicity for which there are no obvious evolutionary pathways. Even in the earliest known cases, the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2 seemed to have been already highly adapted to infect humans via the angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptor found in lungs, kidneys, intestines and blood vessels. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 contains a furin polybasic cleavage site with an amino acid sequence of proline-arginine-arginine-alanine or PRRA that facilitates membrane fusion between the virus and the human cell, a structure that is not found in any other related bat coronavirus. In contrast, the bioengineering capabilities to “splice” the receptor-binding domain from one virus to another and to artificially insert a furin polybasic cleavage site are both well-established laboratory techniques used globally for over ten years. All the basic procedures required to synthesize a virus like SARS-CoV-2 were described in a single scientific publication entitled “Mechanisms of Zoonotic Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Host Range Expansion in Human Airway Epithelium,” which appeared in the Journal of Virology in March, 2008. The construction of new viruses capable of infecting humans began by using, as a viral “backbone,” SARS-CoV-1, the coronavirus responsible for the 2002-2003 pandemic. The spike protein of the SARS-CoV-1 backbone, which contains the receptor-binding domain, was artificially replaced with the spike protein from another coronavirus. The new spike protein underwent additional genetic manipulation by single amino acid substitution in a manner roughly equivalent to inserting a furin polybasic cleavage site. Using a process called serial passaging, the new artificial virus was then exposed to human airway epithelial cell cultures (lung surface cells), where two new viruses were created, both of which were adapted for human infection and were capable of being neutralized with human monoclonal antibodies. Needless to say, the genetic engineering and serial passaging techniques of today are far more advanced and far more widespread than they were twelve years ago. It is entirely feasible that SARS-CoV-2 was created in a similar way. Clearly, it is in the geopolitical interest of the Chinese Communist Party to deflect responsibility for the pandemic by promoting the narrative, both in the scientific literature and the mainstream media, that COVID-19 is just another naturally-occurring disease transmission from animals to humans. That effort has been advanced by China’s refusal to fully disclose the information it possesses and conducting a politically-motivated scientific misinformation campaign. Unfortunately, China’s actions seem to be buttressed by certain elements within the Western scientific community that may have interests in the outcome beyond an objective analysis of the data. Given all the available information, the likelihood that the unique structural features of SARS-CoV-2 are the result of a natural evolutionary process is very small. It is far more likely that China manufactured SARS-CoV-2 and, though a combination of hubris, incompetence and recklessness, unleashed it on the world. (Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D. is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, who previously worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and conducted basic and clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. His email address is lawrence.sellin@gmail.com.) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

A 2008 synthetic model to make COVID-19 in the laboratory

Bacterial Disease Brucellosis outbreak in China - Thousands of people in China have tested positive for a bacterial disease -- Brucellosis -- in an outbreak caused by a leak at a biopharmaceutical company last year.

The Health Commission of Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu province, confirmed that 3,245 people had contracted the disease Brucellosis -- caused by contact with livestock carrying the bacteria brucella.

Another 1,401 people have tested as preliminarily positive for Brucellosis. In total, authorities have tested 21,847 people out of the city's 2.9 million population.

There have, however, been no fatalities reported, the city's Health Commission said.&nbsp;

The disease, also known as Malta fever or Mediterranean fever, can cause symptoms including headaches, muscle pain, fever and fatigue. This can even leave men infertile.

Some symptoms can become chronic or never go away, like arthritis or swelling in certain organs, according to the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Brucellosis had been much more common in China in the 1980s, though it has since declined.

Human-to-human transmission of Brucellosis is extremely rare, according to the CDC. Instead, most people are infected by eating contaminated food or breathing in the bacteria -- which seems to be the case in Lanzhou.

The officials said brucellosis outbreak stemmed from a leak at the Zhongmu Lanzhou biological pharmaceutical factory, which occurred between late July to late August last year. While producing Brucella vaccines for animal use, the factory used expired disinfectants and sanitisers -- meaning not all bacteria were eradicated in the waste gas.

This contaminated waste gas formed aerosols that contained the bacteria -- and leaked into the air, carried by wind down to the Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, where the outbreak first hit.

People at the institute began reporting Brucellosis infections in November. By the end of December, at least 181 people at the institute had been infected with brucellosis, according to Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua.

The&nbsp;Brucellosis outbreak even spread to Heilongjiang province, where 13 positive cases had worked in the veterinarian institute in August.

By January, authorities had revoked vaccine production licenses for the plant, and withdrew product approval numbers for its two Brucellosis vaccines.

Bacterial Disease Brucellosis outbreak in China - Thousands of people in China have tested positive for a bacterial disease -- Brucellosis -- in an outbreak caused by a leak at a biopharmaceutical company last year.

Bacterial Disease Brucellosis outbreak in China - Thousands of people in China have tested positive for a bacterial disease -- Brucellosis -- in an outbreak caused by a leak at a biopharmaceutical company last year. The Health Commission of Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu province, confirmed that 3,245 people had contracted the disease Brucellosis -- caused by contact with livestock carrying the bacteria brucella. Another 1,401 people have tested as preliminarily positive for Brucellosis. In total, authorities have tested 21,847 people out of the city's 2.9 million population. There have, however, been no fatalities reported, the city's Health Commission said. The disease, also known as Malta fever or Mediterranean fever, can cause symptoms including headaches, muscle pain, fever and fatigue. This can even leave men infertile. Some symptoms can become chronic or never go away, like arthritis or swelling in certain organs, according to the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Brucellosis had been much more common in China in the 1980s, though it has since declined. Human-to-human transmission of Brucellosis is extremely rare, according to the CDC. Instead, most people are infected by eating contaminated food or breathing in the bacteria -- which seems to be the case in Lanzhou. The officials said brucellosis outbreak stemmed from a leak at the Zhongmu Lanzhou biological pharmaceutical factory, which occurred between late July to late August last year. While producing Brucella vaccines for animal use, the factory used expired disinfectants and sanitisers -- meaning not all bacteria were eradicated in the waste gas. This contaminated waste gas formed aerosols that contained the bacteria -- and leaked into the air, carried by wind down to the Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, where the outbreak first hit. People at the institute began reporting Brucellosis infections in November. By the end of December, at least 181 people at the institute had been infected with brucellosis, according to Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua. The Brucellosis outbreak even spread to Heilongjiang province, where 13 positive cases had worked in the veterinarian institute in August. By January, authorities had revoked vaccine production licenses for the plant, and withdrew product approval numbers for its two Brucellosis vaccines.

Brucellosis outbreak infects thousands in China amid coronavirus pandemic

Thousands of Hasidic Jews camped at the Ukraine border - because they wanted to go on a pilgrimage. The city of Seoul wants $4 million in damages from a church over a new Covid-19 outbreak. WION's Palki Sharma tells you more about the virus of blind faith.

Gravitas: Defiance in the name of faith, Putting reason above religion

As cases of the Wuhan virus spike, thousands of Hasidic Jewish pilgrims broke social distancing rules for a pilgrimage. They camped for three nights outside the Ukrainian border. Why was it so important for them to cross the border? WION's Palki Sharma tells you more.

Gravitas: Why thousands of pilgrims were camping at Ukraine border

A very interesting trend is picking pace in China. Chinese companies are betting big on 'fake meat'. WION's Palki Sharma tells you what this trend is all about.

Gravitas: China bets big on 'faux meat'

The Wuhan virus is the biggest&nbsp;crisis of the 21st century and it seems to be getting worse.

Several countries across the globe have witnessed a resurgence of the deadly virus due to which governments are imposing a second round of lockdowns.

Even during a pandemic,&nbsp;blind faith is dominating reason due to orthodox people who refuse to part ways with their traditional methods and beliefs.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/hasidic-jewish-pilgrims-leave-belarus-ukraine-border-over-coronavirus-ban-328418" hreflang="en">Hasidic Jewish pilgrims leave Belarus-Ukraine border over coronavirus ban</a>

Hundreds of&nbsp;Hasidic&nbsp;Jewish pilgrims, who had massed along the Belarusian border attempting to enter Ukraine, began leaving Friday after Kiev upheld an entry ban to guard against the coronavirus.

At least 1,000 Orthodox-Jewish believers were camped out this week in no-man's land between Ukrainian and Belarusian border crossings ahead of Jewish New Year celebrations which begin Friday and last until Sunday.

Tens of thousands of&nbsp;Hasidic&nbsp;Jews travel to the central Ukrainian city of Uman every Jewish New Year to visit the tomb of Rabbi Nahman, the founder of the Breslov&nbsp;Hasidic&nbsp;movement.

The metropolitan government in&nbsp;South&nbsp;Korea's capital Seoul said on Friday it would seek $4 million&nbsp;in damages against a church for causing the spread of the coronavirus by disrupting tracing and testing efforts.

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A fresh wave of infections erupted at a church whose members attended a large protest in downtown Seoul in mid-August, becoming the country's largest cluster in the greater capital area. The outbreak has driven triple-digit increases in daily COVID-19 cases for more than a month.

This pandemic is challenging because the world is up against many adversaries: a&nbsp;virus exporter that refuses to come clean, public health systems that aren't up to the task, leaders who want to play politics over lives and people who refuse to put reason over religion.

The Wuhan virus is the biggest crisis of the 21st century and it seems to be getting worse. Several countries across the globe have witnessed a resurgence of the deadly virus due to which governments are imposing a second round of lockdowns.

The Wuhan virus is the biggest crisis of the 21st century and it seems to be getting worse. Several countries across the globe have witnessed a resurgence of the deadly virus due to which governments are imposing a second round of lockdowns. Even during a pandemic, blind faith is dominating reason due to orthodox people who refuse to part ways with their traditional methods and beliefs. Also read: Hasidic Jewish pilgrims leave Belarus-Ukraine border over coronavirus ban Hundreds of Hasidic Jewish pilgrims, who had massed along the Belarusian border attempting to enter Ukraine, began leaving Friday after Kiev upheld an entry ban to guard against the coronavirus. At least 1,000 Orthodox-Jewish believers were camped out this week in no-man's land between Ukrainian and Belarusian border crossings ahead of Jewish New Year celebrations which begin Friday and last until Sunday. Tens of thousands of Hasidic Jews travel to the central Ukrainian city of Uman every Jewish New Year to visit the tomb of Rabbi Nahman, the founder of the Breslov Hasidic movement. The metropolitan government in South Korea's capital Seoul said on Friday it would seek $4 million in damages against a church for causing the spread of the coronavirus by disrupting tracing and testing efforts. × A fresh wave of infections erupted at a church whose members attended a large protest in downtown Seoul in mid-August, becoming the country's largest cluster in the greater capital area. The outbreak has driven triple-digit increases in daily COVID-19 cases for more than a month. This pandemic is challenging because the world is up against many adversaries: a virus exporter that refuses to come clean, public health systems that aren't up to the task, leaders who want to play politics over lives and people who refuse to put reason over religion.

Belief versus coronavirus: No vaccine to prevent blind faith

Dr Li Meng Yan says the Wuhan virus came from a lab. Some scientists say her claims are highly speculative. Twitter has suspended Dr Li's account. Will Twitter use the same yardstuck against Chinese diplomats - who have been caught sharing fake news? Palki Sharma Upadhyay has more.

Gravitas: Wuhan virus lab theory: Chinese virologist loses her twitter account

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