CIA Asserts Lab Leak More Likely Origin of COVID-19

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has reassessed the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and concluded that it is "more likely" to have emerged from a laboratory, a spokesperson for the agency said on Saturday.

Previously, the CIA had refrained from taking a definitive stance on whether the virus originated from a lab or from nature. However, during the final weeks of the Biden administration, then-CIA Director William Burns directed agency analysts and scientists to make a clearer determination, emphasizing the historic significance of the pandemic.

While the CIA stated that it has "low confidence" in its conclusion, it maintained that both a laboratory-based and natural origin of COVID-19 remain plausible scenarios.

China's Response
The Chinese government has consistently denied any claims of a lab leak being the source of the pandemic. In response to the CIA’s recent assessment, China’s embassy in Washington did not immediately provide a comment, and Beijing has criticized U.S. intelligence agencies for politicizing the matter.

China has expressed its support for and participation in global efforts to investigate the origins of COVID-19, but maintains that any suggestions of a lab leak are without merit.

CIA's Ongoing Investigations
In an interview following his confirmation as CIA Director on Friday, John Ratcliffe outlined that one of his first priorities is to make a public statement on the origins of the virus. "I have been on record as saying that the evidence suggests the virus most likely came from a leak at the Wuhan Institute of Virology," Ratcliffe stated, emphasizing the importance of this issue to his administration.