China Accused of Destroying COVID-19 Data, The Daily Telegraph Reports

Western intelligence agencies have accused China of destroying COVID-19 data. The Daily Telegraph reports, citing a report from the 'Five Eyes' intelligence alliance (the US, Australia, Canada, the UK, and New Zealand).

The document reportedly states that the Chinese government concealed information about the virus by destroying evidence of its presence in laboratories and silencing doctors. Despite data beginning to emerge in early December about human-to-human transmission of the virus, Chinese authorities denied this fact until January 20.

The report mentions a group of scientists led by Professor Shi Zhengli from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, who discovered samples of a coronavirus similar to COVID-19 in a cave in Yunnan in 2013. They have since engaged in synthesizing coronaviruses obtained from bats.

At the same time, the newspaper notes that the intelligence assessments regarding the virus's origin are divided. The US leans toward the theory of a lab leak, while Australian intelligence considers the Chinese government’s stance—that the virus has a natural origin—to be more credible.