Azerbaijani MP Agil Abbas stated in his interview to Baku TV: “Some world powers play politics and argue that virus came out of bats. How come nothing came out of bats in last thousand years but only yesterday?” he mentioned. The claim turns out to be false.
WHO-convened global study about origins of SARS-Cov-2, researches test different claims related to Covid-19 virus geneses. It is concluded that in order to check the aforementioned claim, all high-facility biosecurity laboratories of the world should be investigated. According to the same report, bats have been identified as the hosts of a series of important zoonotic viruses (for example, Nipah virus, Hendra virus and SARS-CoV), including coronaviruses with considerable genetic diversityScientists have discovered that severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS) were caused by viruses that originated in bats, with other animals serving as intermediate hosts, flying mammals are considered the reservoir host for SARS-CoV-2 as well.
27 world scientists published a joint-statement in Lancet journal, stating that the claims distributed about Covid- 19 has political motives and the virus was originated from nature. They did so in defense of Chinese scientists, healthcare workers, and public intellectuals. “We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin,” scientists say.
Besides, the U.S. National Institute of Allergic and Infectious Diseases notified that Covid-19 belongs to a virus family that is contagious among humans and animals. WHO’s study also acknowledges that possible source of the virus is exotic animal markets located in Wuhan, China. Eddie Holmes, virologist from the University of Sydney, also supported the idea, saying that virus was transmitted from animal to human.
Another study by WHO from early during pandemic also stated that facts collected so far at that point do not corroborate that the virus was produced in a laboratory. “All facts lead to a conclusion that the virus is animal-origin. Researchers who studied the genetics of the virus believe that it doesn’t look like a sort came out of laboratory,” the report says.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there is an evidence that infections have been originated from the bats in the past, but there is no proof that the virus was produced in a laboratory, however, more investigation is needed in order to better understand the origins of the virus. Thus, the MP’s claim was false.
RESEARCH | ARTICLE © Heydar Isayev, GIPA’s Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management
Leave your comments, thoughts and suggestions in the box below. Take note: your response is moderated.
