An international expert mission to Wuhan has concluded it was very likely that COVID-19 first passed to humans from a bat through an intermediary animal, while all but ruling out a laboratory leak.
The intermediate host hypothesis was deemed “likely to very likely,” while the theory that the virus escaped from a lab was seen as “extremely unlikely”, according to the long-awaited report, which AFP obtained a copy of on Monday, before the official release.
The report from the international mission to Wuhan has been keenly anticipated ever since the expert team left China more than a month ago.
Delays in the publication of the findings, drafted in collaboration with the team’s …
Keep on reading: Virus likely jumped to humans from bats through ‘missing link’ animal — WHO report