Energy Department suspects lab leak may have caused COVID-19 pandemic: report

The United States Department of Energy is now saying that the COVID-19 pandemic may have stemmed from a laboratory leak, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The agency confirmed its conclusion with "low confidence," after reviewing a classified intelligence report, according to the WSJ.

Per the WSJ:

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan declined to confirm or deny the Journal's reporting in an appearance Sunday on CNN. He said President Biden had repeatedly directed every part of the intelligence community to invest in trying to discern as much as possible about the origins of the pandemic.

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According to WSJ, the "FBI previously came to the conclusion that the pandemic was likely the result of a lab leak in 2021 with 'moderate confidence' and still holds to this view."

Sullivan continued, "President Biden specifically requested that the national labs, which are part of the Energy Department, be brought into this assessment because he wants to put every tool at use to be able to figure out what happened here."

Dr. Relman, a former federal scientific-advisory board member said, "Kudos to those who are willing to set aside their preconceptions and objectively re-examine what we know and don’t know about COVID origins.

Relman continued, "My plea is that we not accept an incomplete answer or give up because of political expediency."

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The Wall Street Journal's full report is available at this link.