WHO begin investigation into Covid’s origins in Wuhan

The scientists emerge from their 14-day quarantine period

The team has been video-conferencing with Chinese scientists during quarantine (EPA)

A World Health Organisation (WHO) team probing the origins of the coronavirus in the Chinese city of Wuhan have emerged from quarantine and will begin their investigations.

The global team’s visit to Wuhan, where Covid-19 was first detected, was approved by President Xi Jinping’s government after months of delays and diplomatic wrangling.

The first cases of Covid-19 were connected to a seafood market in Wuhan, leading scientists to suspect that the virus jumped to humans from animals. The country’s ruling Communist Party has repeatedly claimed the virus came from abroad, possibly on imported seafood, but scientists have rejected the theory.

The research group will now interview people from Chinese research institutes, hospitals, as well as talk to people from the wet market that has been connected to the initial outbreak. Samples from the market may still be available.

A relative of one of Wuhan’s coronavirus victims has also demanded to speak to the team of experts, calling on the WHO to talk to affected families who claim they have been silenced by the government. 

The WHO has insisted that the point of the investigation is not to attribute blame, with its emergencies director Michael Ryan telling a press conference that the team aims to “find the scientific answers about the very important interface between the animal kingdom and the human kingdom”, rather than “culprits”.

The organisation has said that decoding how the virus first jumped from animals to humans is vital in order to preventing another pandemic.

The experts are also likely to visit the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which holds an extensive archive of genetic sequences of bat coronaviruses. The archive was set up following the 2003 SARS pandemic, which spread from China to many countries. re

The WHO team of international experts reached Wuhan on 14 January, and spent two weeks in quarantine. The group is comprised of scientists from the US, Australia, Germany, Japan, the UK, Russia, the Netherlands, Qatar and Vietnam.

The scientists spent the period of isolation in video calls with each other and Chinese experts.

China had previously rejected demands for an independent international investigation into the origins of the virus, claiming that the demands were politically motivated and would distract the country from fighting the pandemic.

The delays in allowing a WHO team into China were met by criticism from director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who said he was “very disappointed” and that the visit was a “priority for WHO and the international team”.

In December, an investigation by the Associated Press learned the Chinese government is funding scientists to research the virus’ origins in southern China while monitoring their findings. Furthermore, the publication of any data or research must be signed off by a task force managed by China’s cabinet, under direct orders from President Xi Jinping, according to internal documents seen by the news agency.

State media continue to highlight reports that suggest the virus could have originated outside China. In announcing the experts’ visit, foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said “the tracing of the virus origin will most likely involve multiple countries and localities".