COVID-19 conspiracy theories soar after latest report on origins

Republican Senator Joni Ernst talks to reporters in Washington on Feb. 28, 2023, about the US Energy Department's findings that point to a lab in Wuhan, China, as the source of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Updated 02 March 2023
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COVID-19 conspiracy theories soar after latest report on origins

  • The US Energy Department’s report is the latest of many attempts by scientists and officials to identify the origin of the virus
  • Nearly 7 million people have dieed of COVID-19 since the virus was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019

WASHINGTON: COVID-19’s origins remain hazy. Three years after the start of the pandemic, it’s still unclear whether the coronavirus that causes the disease leaked from a lab or spread to humans from an animal.
This much is known: When it comes to COVID-19 misinformation, any new report on the virus’ origin quickly triggers a relapse and a return of misleading claims about the virus, vaccines and masks that have reverberated since the pandemic began.
It happened again this week after the Energy Department confirmed that a classified report determined, with low confidence, that the virus escaped from a lab. Within hours, online mentions of conspiracy theories involving COVID-19 began to rise, with many commenters saying the classified report was proof they were right all along.
Far from definitive, the Energy Department’s report is the latest of many attempts by scientists and officials to identify the origin of the virus, which has now killed nearly 7 million people after being first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019.
The report has not been made public, and officials in Washington stressed that a variety of US agencies are not in agreement on the origin. On Tuesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray told Fox News that the FBI “has for quite some time now” assessed that the pandemic’s origins are “most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan.”




In this January 24, 2020 photo, a police officer stands guard outside the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, where the coronavirus was detected in Wuhan on Jan. 24, 2020. (AFP)

But others in the US intelligence community disagree, and there’s no consensus. Many scientists believe the likeliest explanation is that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 jumped from animals to humans, possibly at Wuhan’s Huanan market, a scenario backed up by multiple studies and reports. The World Health Organization has said that while an animal origin remains most likely, the possibility of a lab leak must be investigated further before it can be ruled out.
People should be open-minded about the evidence used in the Energy Department’s assessment, according to virologist Angela Rasmussen. But she said that without evaluating the classified report, she can’t assess if it’s persuasive enough to challenge the conclusion that the virus spread from an animal.
“The vast majority of the evidence continues to support natural origin,” Rasmussen told The Associated Press Wednesday. “I’m a scientist. I need to see the evidence rather than take the FBI director’s word for it.”
Many of those citing the report as proof, however, seemed uninterested in the details. They seized on the report and said it suggests the experts were wrong when it came to masks and vaccines, too.
“School closures were a failed & catastrophic policy. Masks are ineffective. And harmful,” said a tweet that’s been read nearly 300,000 times since Sunday. “COVID came from a lab. Everything we skeptics said was true.”
Overall mentions of COVID-19 began to rise after The Wall Street Journal published a story about the Energy Department report on Sunday. Since then, mentions of various COVID-related conspiracy theories have soared, according to an analysis conducted by Zignal Labs, a San Francisco-based media intelligence firm, and shared with The Associated Press.
While the lab leak theory has bounced around the Internet since the pandemic began, references to it soared 100,000 percent in the 48 hours after the Energy Department report was revealed, according to Zignal’s analysis, which combed through social media, blogs and other sites.
Many of the conspiracy theories contradict each other and the findings in the Energy Department report. In a tweet on Tuesday, US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, called COVID-19 a “man made bioweapon from China.” A follower quickly challenged her: “It was made in Ukraine,” he responded.
With so many questions remaining about a world event that has claimed so many lives and upended even more, it’s not at all surprising that COVID-19 is still capable of generating so much anger and misinformation, according to Bret Schafer, a senior fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy, a Washington-based organization that has tracked government propaganda about COVID-19.
“The pandemic was so incredibly disruptive to everyone. The intensity of feelings about COVID, I don’t think that’s going to go away,” Schafer said. “And any time something new comes along, it breathes new life into these grievances and frustrations, real or imagined.”
Chinese government officials have in the past used their social media accounts to amplify anti-US conspiracy theories, including some that suggested the US created the COVID-19 virus and framed its release on China.
So far, they’ve taken a quieter approach to the Energy Department report. In their official response, China’s government dismissed the agency’s assessment as an effort to politicize the pandemic. Online, Beijing’s sprawling propaganda and disinformation network was largely silent, with just a few posts criticizing or mocking the report.
“BREAKING,” a pro-China YouTuber wrote on Twitter. “I can now announce, with ‘low confidence,’ that the COVID pandemic began as a leak from Hunter Biden’s laptop.”
 


Five arrested in UK for disrupting film starring Israeli actor Gadot

Updated 6 sec ago
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Five arrested in UK for disrupting film starring Israeli actor Gadot

LONDON: London police on Wednesday arrested five people for trying to disrupt the filming of a movie starring Israeli actress Gal Gadot, a statement said.
Gadot, star of “Wonder Woman” and in “Fast and Furious” is in London to film a new thriller “The Runner.” She has been criticized by pro-Palestinian groups for expressing her support of Israel since the Gaza war erupted in 2023.
Police said officers were deployed to a “filming location” in Westminster “to identify suspects wanted in connection with offenses at previous film set protests and to deal with any new offenses.”
The arrests were for blocking an access to a place of work. Police said in a statement posted on social media that two of the arrests were for previous protests and three for action carried out Wednesday.
“While we absolutely acknowledge the importance of peaceful protest, we have a duty to intervene where it crosses the line into serious disruption or criminality,” said Superintendent Neil Holyoak in the statement.
“I hope today’s operation shows we will not tolerate the harassment of or unlawful interference with those trying to go about their legitimate professional work in London,” the officer added.
Pro-Palestinian protesters also disrupted a Hollywood ceremony in March when Gadot’s star on the Walk of Fame was unveiled.


Trump bid to deport Columbia activist Khalil likely unconstitutional, judge says

Updated 20 min 48 sec ago
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Trump bid to deport Columbia activist Khalil likely unconstitutional, judge says

  • Lawsuit says attempted deportation violates Khalil's right to freedom of speech under US Constitution’s First Amendment
  • Khalil, a Columbia University student, was arrested on March 8 over his participation in pro-Palestinian protests

NEW YORK: A US judge said on Wednesday the Trump administration’s bid to deport Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil is likely unconstitutional.
US District Judge Michael Farbiarz in Newark, New Jersey said he will issue a further order with next steps later on Wednesday. Khalil is currently in immigration detention in Louisiana.
Khalil was arrested on March 8 after the State Department revoked his green card under a little-used provision of US immigration law granting the US secretary of state the power to seek the deportation of any non-citizen whose presence in the country is deemed adverse to US foreign policy interests.
Khalil and his supporters say his arrest and attempted deportation are violations of his right to freedom of speech under the US Constitution’s First Amendment.
Farbiarz wrote that he would not rule for now on whether Khalil’s First Amendment rights were violated. But he said Khalil was likely to succeed in his argument that the legal provision invoked by the Trump administration is so vague as to be unconstitutional.
The judge wrote that it was unlikely that an “ordinary person” would know that the law “could be used against him based on his speech inside the United States, however odious it might allegedly have been.”
Lawyers for Khalil and spokespeople for the White House, the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Khalil was the first known foreign student to be arrested as part of President Donald Trump’s bid to deport foreign students who took part in pro-Palestinian protests that swept US college campuses after Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and Israel’s subsequent military assault.
Civil rights groups argue that Trump’s administration unlawfully detained the 30-year-old public policy student in retaliation for his criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
The Hamas attack killed 1,195 people, according to Israeli tallies, and Israel’s military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Khalil, a Palestinian who was born and raised in a refugee camp in Syria, entered the US on a student visa in 2022 and became a lawful permanent resident last year through his wife Noor Abdalla, an American citizen.
Federal judges in recent weeks have ordered another Palestinian Columbia student, Mohsen Mahdawi, and a Turkish student at Tufts University in Massachusetts, Rumeysa Ozturk, to be released from immigration detention while they challenge the government’s efforts to deport them.


Elon Musk criticizes Trump’s ‘big beautiful bill,’ a fracture in a key relationship

Updated 51 min 7 sec ago
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Elon Musk criticizes Trump’s ‘big beautiful bill,’ a fracture in a key relationship

  • Says the “massive spending bill” increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of the DOGE
  • "A bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk said, “but I don’t know if it could be both.”

WASHINGTON: Elon Musk is criticizing the centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, a significant fracture in a partnership that was forged during last year’s campaign and was poised to reshape American politics and the federal government.
The billionaire entrepreneur, who supported Trump’s candidacy with at least $250 million and has worked for his administration as a senior adviser, said he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his “big beautiful bill.”
The legislation includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration enforcement. While speaking to CBS, Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk said. “But I don’t know if it could be both.”

 

His CBS interview came out Tuesday night. Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, defended his agenda by talking about the delicate politics involved with negotiating the legislation.
“I’m not happy about certain aspects of it, but I’m thrilled by other aspects of it,” he said.
Trump also suggested that more changes could be made.
“We’re going to see what happens,” he said. “It’s got a way to go.”
Republicans recently pushed the measure through the House and are debating it in the Senate.
Musk’s concerns are shared by some Republican lawmakers. Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson said he was “pretty confident” there was enough opposition “to slow this process down until the president, our leadership, gets serious” about reducing spending. Speaking at a Milwaukee Press Club event on Wednesday, he added that there was no amount of pressure Trump could put on him to change his position.
Speaker Mike Johnson has asked senators to make as few changes to the legislation as possible, saying that House Republicans reached a “very delicate balance” that could be upended with major changes. The narrowly divided House will have to vote again on final passage once the Senate alters the bill.
On Wednesday, Johnson thanked Musk for his work and promised to pursue more spending cuts in the future, saying “the House is eager and ready to act on DOGE’s findings.”
The White House is sending some proposed rescissions, a mechanism used to cancel previously authorized spending, to Capitol Hill to solidify some of DOGE’s cuts. A spokesperson for the Office of Management and Budget said the package will include $1.1 billion from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, and $8.3 billion in foreign assistance.
Musk’s criticism come as he steps back from his government work, rededicating himself to companies like the electric automaker Tesla and rocket manufacturer SpaceX. He’s also said he’ll reduce his political spending, because “I think I’ve done enough.”
At times, he’s seemed chastened by his experience working in government. Although he hoped that DOGE would generate $1 trillion in spending cuts, he’s fallen far short of that target.
“The federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realized,” he told The Washington Post. “I thought there were problems, but it sure is an uphill battle trying to improve things in D.C., to say the least.”
Musk had previously been energized by the opportunity to reshape Washington. He wore campaign hats in the White House, held his own campaign rallies and talked about excessive spending as an existential crisis. He often tended to be effusive in his praise of Trump.
“The more I’ve gotten to know President Trump, the more I like the guy,” Musk said in February. “Frankly, I love him.”
Trump repaid the favor, describing Musk as “a truly great American.” When Tesla faced declining sales, he turned the White House driveway into a makeshift showroom to illustrate his support.
It’s unclear what, if any, impact that Musk’s comments about the bill would have on the legislative debate. During the transition period, he helped whip up opposition to a spending measure as the country stood on the brink of a federal government shutdown.
His latest criticism could embolden Republicans who want bigger spending cuts. Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee reposted a Fox News story about Musk’s interview while also adding his own take on the measure, saying there was “still time to fix it.”
“The Senate version will be more aggressive,” Lee said. “It can, it must, and it will be. Or it won’t pass.”
Only two Republicans — Reps. Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie of Kentucky — voted against the bill when the House took up the measure last week.
Davidson took note of Musk’s comments on social media.
“Hopefully, the Senate will succeed with the Big Beautiful Bill where the House missed the moment,” he wrote. “Don’t hope someone else will cut deficits someday, know it has been done this Congress.”
The Congressional Budget Office, in a preliminary estimate, said the tax provisions would increase federal deficits by $3.8 trillion over the decade, while the changes to Medicaid, food stamps and other services would reduce spending by slightly more than $1 trillion over the same period.
House Republican leaders say increased economic growth would allow the bill to be deficit neutral or reducing, but outside watchdogs are skeptical. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the bill would add $3 trillion to the debt, including interest, over the next decade.
 


Macron navigates rocky path to recognizing Palestinian state

Updated 28 May 2025
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Macron navigates rocky path to recognizing Palestinian state

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron is leaning toward recognizing a Palestinian state, but diplomats and experts say such a move may prove a premature and ineffective way to pressure Israel into moving toward a peace deal with the Palestinians.

They say it could deepen Western splits, not only within the already-divided European Union, but also with the US, Israel’s staunchest ally, and would need to be accompanied by other measures such as sanctions and trade bans if recognition were to be anything more than a symbolic gesture.

French officials are weighing up the move ahead of a United Nations conference, which France and Saudi Arabia are co-hosting between June 17-20, to lay out the parameters for a roadmap to a Palestinian state, while ensuring Israel’s security.

“Only a political solution will make it possible to restore peace and build for the long term,” Macron said on Wednesday during a visit to Indonesia.

“Together with Saudi Arabia, we will soon be organizing a conference on Gaza in New York to give fresh impetus to the recognition of a Palestinian state and the recognition of the State of Israel and its right to live in peace and security in this region,” added Macron.

If Macron does go ahead, France, home to Europe’s largest Jewish and Muslim communities, would become the first Western heavyweight to recognize a Palestinian state, potentially giving greater momentum to a movement hitherto dominated by smaller nations that are generally more critical of Israel.

Macron’s stance has shifted amid Israel’s intensified Gaza offensive and escalating violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank, and there is a growing sense of urgency in Paris to act now before the idea of a two-state solution vanishes forever.


Any US-Iran deal should include ‘robust’ IAEA inspections: Grossi

Updated 28 May 2025
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Any US-Iran deal should include ‘robust’ IAEA inspections: Grossi

  • Tehran says may allow American inspectors from nuclear watchdog if an agreement is reached

VIENNA: Any deal between Iran and the US that would impose fresh nuclear curbs on Iran should include “very robust” inspections by the UN nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said on Wednesday.

The two countries are holding talks meant to rein in Iranian nuclear activities that have rapidly accelerated since President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of a 2015 deal between Iran and major powers that strictly limited those activities.

As that deal has unraveled, Iran has increased the purity to which it is enriching uranium to up to 60 percent, close to the roughly 90 percent of nuclear arms-grade, from 3.67 percent under the deal. It has also scrapped the extra IAEA oversight imposed by the 2015 pact.

“My impression is that if you have that type of agreement, a solid, very robust inspection by the IAEA ... should be a prerequisite, and I’m sure it will be, because it would imply a very, very serious commitment on the part of Iran, which must be verified,” Grossi said.

He stopped short, however, of saying Iran should resume implementation of the Additional Protocol, an agreement between the IAEA and member states that broadens the range of IAEA oversight to include snap inspections of undeclared sites. 

Iran implemented it under the 2015 deal, until the US exit in 2018.

Asked if he meant the protocol should be applied, Grossi said “I’m very practical,” adding that this was not a subject in the talks. While the IAEA is not part of the talks, he said he was in touch with both sides, including US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

“I don’t think they are discussing it in these terms. I don’t see the discussion as being a discussion on legal norms to be applied or not. I tend to see this as more of an ad hoc approach,” said Grossi.

Iran, meanwhile, said it may consider allowing US inspectors with the IAEA to inspect its facilities if a deal is reached with the US.

“Countries that were hostile to us and behaved unprincipledly over the years — we have always tried not to accept inspectors from those countries,” Iran’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami said, referring to staff from the IAEA. Tehran “will reconsider accepting American inspectors through the agency” if “an agreement is reached, and Iran’s demands are taken into account,” he added.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said that “consultations are ongoing regarding the time and location of the next round of talks, and once finalized, they will be announced by Oman.” 

Eslami said: “The enrichment percentage depends on the type of use. When highly enriched uranium is produced, it does not necessarily mean military use,” he said.

Baqaei meanwhile said: “The continuation of enrichment in Iran is an inseparable part of the country’s nuclear industry and a fundamental principle for the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

“Any proposal or initiative that contradicts this principle or undermines this right is unacceptable.”