Mon Jan 27 09:40:02 IST 2025: ## CIA Shifts Stance, Now Believes COVID-19 More Likely Originated from Lab Leak
**Washington D.C.** – The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has announced a shift in its assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic’s origins, now believing a laboratory leak is “more likely” than a natural origin. However, the agency emphasized “low confidence” in this judgment, stating that it will continue to evaluate available intelligence.
This announcement follows a similar conclusion from the FBI and Department of Energy, bringing the total number of US agencies publicly supporting the lab leak theory to three. Four other US intelligence agencies and the National Intelligence Council maintain that a natural transmission is the more likely origin.
The CIA’s spokesperson clarified that both research-related and natural origin scenarios remain plausible, but the agency’s assessment favors the lab leak hypothesis. US media reports indicate the assessment was ordered under the Biden administration and completed before the recent appointment of John Ratcliffe as CIA director. Ratcliffe, a vocal proponent of the lab leak theory, has stated that investigating the virus’s origins will be a top priority.
China’s embassy in Washington strongly rejected the CIA’s assessment, calling it “political manipulation” and urging a focus on scientific research rather than political judgment. They cited a 2021 World Health Organization-China joint study that deemed a lab leak “extremely unlikely.” The embassy reiterated its opposition to the politicization of the virus’s origin and called for adherence to scientific principles.
The differing assessments highlight the ongoing debate surrounding the origins of COVID-19, with a lack of conclusive evidence fueling conflicting conclusions from various intelligence agencies and international organizations. The CIA’s announcement underscores the complexity of the investigation and the continued uncertainty surrounding this critical question.
First Piper 