WHO urges countries to investigate early suspected virus cases

GENEVA: The World Health Organization has said that a report that COVID-19 had emerged in December in France, sooner than previously thought, was “not surprising”, and urged countries to investigate any other early suspicious cases.

A French hospital, after retesting old samples from pneumonia patients, had discovered that it treated a man who had coronavirus as early as December 27.  

Referring to French Report, WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier in a press briefing in Geneva said, “This gives a whole new picture on everything.”

He further said, “The findings help to better understand the potential virus circulation of COVID-19,” adding, “Other possible earlier cases could emerge after retesting samples.”

The WHO spokesperson urged other countries to investigate for pneumonia cases of unspecified origin in late 2019. He said that this would give the world a new and clearer picture of the outbreak.

Commenting on the origins of the virus in China, he stressed that it was ‘really, really important’ to explore this.  

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo asserted that his country has “evidence” that the new coronavirus emerged from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, although scientists have advised the WHO that it is of animal origin.