COVID-19 Timeline 9 (Hacked)

In understanding the true origin of the coronavirus pandemic of 2019-2020, it is interesting to look at the timeline of its development, especially as it arose in Wuhan, China, but with an emphasis on the science. Such a focus is not simple or easy, as the science involves cutting-edge genome studies, complex microbiological and biochemical discussions and analyses, and theoretical conclusions which are often arguable and may, or may not, be conclusive or definitive. Plus individual scientists may bring to the table personal opinions, prejudices and politics which can affect their work. Of course the other major element in this story is the broader political environment and how the major players such as China, the World Health Organisation (WHO), and later the United States and other nations, deal with, or dealt with, the pandemic. This especially applies to the release of information by all parties, often not based on medical and scientific grounds, but on political or economic impact implications. We have seen this most noticeably in regards to China and the United States, though they are not the only nations to politically manipulate the situation, with the President of Brazil another head-in-the sand politician who has been prepared to see his nation's people get sick and die rather than implement the best advice of medical and scientific experts.

In looking at the source and early history of the COVID-19 outbreak, the culpability of the Communist Party of China shines through in regards to political censorship and cronyism, as does the later action of US President Donald Trump in stifling efforts to stem the tide of the pandemic in that country. Also figuring large, though to a lesser degree, is the ongoing corruption within the World Health Organisation, which appears unreasonably bound to China and, as a result, was lax in warning the world of the impending crisis, and also failed to promote the important work done by nations such as Taiwan in dealing with the outbreak. The early scientific research by independent Chinese researchers during December 2019 - January 2020 is crucial to the story, especially during a period prior of censorship and denial by the Communist. Also crucial, is the testimony of Chinese health workers who have spoken out and suffered accordingly through the action of the police and Communist Party enforcers. The main issues at hand remain:

Disposal of bodies, Guayaquil, Ecuador, 12 April 2020.

Q1: Did COVID-19 originate in a laboratory i.e. was it 1) a natural virus stored in the laboratory for research purposes, which accidentally or purposefully escaped, or 2) the result of 'gain-of-function' research and experimentation, in which naturally occurring genetic material, such as bat-sourced coronavirus and HIV virus genome data, were combined to create a synthetic virus with unknown pathology? 

Q2: Why did the Communist Party of China seek to hide the fact of a new contagious coronavirus for approximately 2 months between mid' November and mid' January 2020, thereby allowing the virus to spread around the world and leave nations unprepared?

The first question remains unanswered, despite a recent campaign to debunk any suggestion of a laboratory origin - a suggestion which was strongly supported both within and without China during the early stages of the investigative research process and which remains pertinent to this day among elements of the scientific community. The reason for the censoring may never be known, through some have suggested that it relates to culpability by the Chinese military in regard to development and release of the coronavirus, and also corruption in the name of profit to be made from the stockpiling of personal protective gear prior to a public announcement of the need for such supplies. The campaign by China to rewrite the true history of the development and spread of the coronavirus remains prominent and is revealed, in part, through the following timeline. Fortunately the postings by various scientists and investigative reporters is setting this campaign back. Hopefully, the truth will win out.

Timeline

1976

The Hanta virus outbreak in South Korea is related to human contact with rat excrement and urine.

1994

The spread of the Hendra virus in Australia is the first known modern occurrence of animal (horses) to human transmission. Horses were eventually identified as intermediate hosts, with the infection derived from fruit bats (flying foxes).

1998

During the Nipah henipavirus outbreak in Malaysia, contagion jumped from pigs to humans. The pigs were identified as intermediate hosts, with the infection derived from bats.

2002-2004

The SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) coronavirus spreads from bats to humans, though at the time Palm Civet - a cat like mammal - was proposed as the source. One scenario is that a cook who was preparing a civet to be eaten got infected; he eventually got sick, went to hospital and, in turn, unknowingly infected a doctor; the doctor went to Hong Kong and spread the infection at the Hotel Metropole. Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002%E2%80%932004_SARS_outbreak.

2004

Shi Zhengli releases a sampled bat, China, 2004.

Chinese microbiologist Shi Zhengli and her team from the Wuhan Institute of Virology discover bats with coronavirus antibodies in caves in southern China. This indicates that they are a source, and not an intermediate host. The team will continue testing at various cave sites for 5 years in order to develop this link.

2005

- October: Shi Zhengli et al., Bats are natural reservoirs of SARS-like coronaviruses, Science, 310(5748), 2015, 676-679.

2006

- 16 November: US firm Chiron Corporation applies for a patent for SARS Coronavirus. URL: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/patent/US2006257852.

- December: Shi Zhengli et al., Review of bats and SARS, Emerging Infectious Diseases, 12(12), 2006, 1834-1840. Carried out by researchers in China, Australia and the US.

2007

- October: Shi Zhengli et al., Evolutionary relationship between bat coronaviruses and their hosts, Emerging Infectious Diseases, 13(10), 2007, 1526-1532.

2008

- Shi Zhengli et al., A review of studies on animal reservoirs of the SARS coronavirus, Virus Research, 133(1), 2008, 74-87. Numerous other related papers were also published in this year by Zhengli.

2009

- June: P. Zhou et al., Immunogenicity difference between the SARS coronavirus and the bat SARS-like coronavirus spike (S) proteins, Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 387(2), 2009, 326-329. Research carried out by the Chinese Academy of Science, Wuhan, and the CSIRO, Australia.

2010

- June: Shi Zhengli et al., Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE) proteins of different bat species confer variable susceptibility to SARS-CoV entry, Archives of Virology, 155, 2010, 1563-1569. This paper unearths the passageway for the transmission of coronavirus from animals into humans, with research focused on the role of the S (spike) protein which facilitates entry into human cells and the blood stream.

- July: Shi Zhengli et al., Hantavirus outbreak associated with laboratory rats in Yunnan, China, Infection, Genetics and Evolution, 10(5), 2010, 638-644.

2012

The MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) coronavirus spreads from host camels (?) to humans in Saudi Arabia and to other countries.

- Shi Zhengli et al., Metagenomic analysis of viruses from bat fecal samples reveals many novel viruses in insectivorous bats in China, Journal of Virology, 86(8), 2012, 4620-4630.

2013

- 30 October: Shi Zhengli et al., Isolation and characterisation of a bat SARS-like coronavirus that uses the ACE2 receptor, Nature, 503, 535-538. The paper identifies Chinese horseshoe bats as natural reservoirs for SARS-CoV with S proteins, suggesting that it is likely transmittable directly to humans, without the need for an intervening host.

2014

- The Ebola virus spreads within Africa. It is believed to have derived directly from bat to human contact. A second outbreak occurs in August 2018.

- 16 October: The US Obama Administration announce Statement on Funding Pause on Certain Types of Gain-of-Function Research, including a halt to experiments with influenza, SARS and MERS viruses.

2015

April - Dany Shoham, China's Biological Warfare Programme: An Integrative Study with Special Reference to Biological Weapons Capabilities, Journal of Defence Studies, April 2015, 9(2). Noted that China had 30 facilities developing and testing biological weapons. It is suspected that coronaviruses are part of this program run, in part, by the People's Liberation Army.

23 July - US company The Pirbright Institute submits a patent application for a coronavirus which could form the basis for a vaccine to prevent respiratory disease in birds. URL: https://patents.justia.com/patent/10130701.

October - Shi Zhengli research discovers SARS antibodies from bats in people living near the bat caves, suggesting direct infection.

9 November - Shi Zhengli et al., A SARS-like cluster of circulating bat coronaviruses shows potential for human emergence, Nature Medicine, 21, 2015, 1508-1513. This paper reveals that Zhengli and her team have created a new (synthetic) virus in the laboratory from SARS-CoV and the bat S protein - one which would be transmissible directly to humans. Upon testing with rats, this resulted in severe lung infection. There was a plan to test primates. This was an example of the controversial 'gain-of-function' research banned in the US (Phillips 2020, Daily Telegraph 2.5.2020)

12 November - deep concern is expressed in the scientific community over the Shi Zhengli research paper in regard to human infection by accidental or purposeful release of a synthesised coronavirus. Paper: Declan Butler, Engineered bat virus stirs debate over risky research. Lab-made coronavirus related to SARS can infect human cells, Nature News, 12 November 2015.

2018

5 January - Discovery of a number of bat-derived coronaviruses from Zhoushan Province by researchers associated with the Third Military Medical University of Chongqing and the Institute of Military Medicine, Nanjing Command. Research paper subsequently published in September. This is separate from the Shi Zhengli research.

19 January - Following a US consular visit to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a report is made raising concerns over safety and management issues at the laboratory. The matter of work on bat coronaviruses and possible human contamination was also noted in the report (Washington Post 14.4.20).

27 March - US consular delegation visits Wuhan Institute of Virology. Follow up meeting by US Consular delegation to the WIV.

June - Hospitals put under control of the local Chinese Communist Party secretary. This results in the politicisation of the health system.

12 September - Dan Hu et al., Genome characterization and infectivity of a novel SARS-like coronavirus in Chinese bats, Emerging Microbes and Infections, 7, 2018, 154. Paper by People's Liberation Army scientists. Known as the Zhoushan Virus, in later studies it showed a very high similarity to COVID-19, with 100% amino acid protein similarity suggesting that the latter could not be a natural mutation, but was derived from reverse engineering, or a recombination event. This points to a connection between the Chinese biological weapons program and COVID-19.

14 November - Shi Zhengli speaks at Shanghai Jiaotong University on 'Studies on bat coronavirus and its cross-species infection'.

10 December - Shi Zhengli et al., Origin and evolution of pathogenic corona viruses, Nature Reviews Microbiology, 17, 2018, 181-192. This paper is a review of coronavirus outbreaks to date.

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2019

July - The Trump administration cancels Dr Linda Quick's position embedded in the Chinese Centre for Disease Control.

October

6-11 October - A May 2020 report by a private investigation firm suggests that there was a possible hazardous event at the Wuhan Institute of Virology P4 Lab during this time, causing it to be closed and a roadblock put in place through to 25 October (NBC 9.5.20; MACE E-PAI COVID-19 Analysis report, May 2020).

18-27 October - World Military Games held in Wuhan, China.

28 October - Brace for Impact (BFI) index system in Hong Kong correlates words "SARS", "Wuhan" and "Pneumonia" to be 0.6.

November

early November - It is likely that the new (novel) coronavirus begins spreading in Wuhan from an unknown source. The cost of health care in China inhibits reporting.

3 November

- A married couple from Inner Mongolia are transported to Chaoyang Hospital, Beijing, and diagnosed with "viral pneumonia plague".

- A series of training workshops begin at the Wuhan Institute of Virology on Biosafety Lab Management and Techniques.

9 November - Brace for Impact (BFI) index of correlation for "SARS" and "Wuhan" is now at 0.8.

12 November

- Chinese censors instruct news aggregators to block and control online discussion about "plague".

- Beijing confirms case of Inner Mongolia plague patients. URL: https://www.sohu.com/a/353347285_114731.

16 November - a third case of viral pneumonia plague reported from an Inner Mongolia man.

17 November

- First report of a person from Hubei infected with coronavirus initially referred to as SARS-CoV-2 (SARS2) and later as 2019-nCoV and then COVID-19 (South China Morning Post 13.3.20)

- 1-6 new cases being reported daily.

- Words like SARS, Feidian, shortness of breath, dyspnea and diarrhea begin appearing on Chinese social media.

18 November - third case of viral pneumonia plague diagnosed.

late November

- of the first 9 reported cases of a SARS-like virus, there were 4 men and 5 women, aged between 39 and 79. No Patient Zero is  publically identified.

- the US National Centre for Medical Intelligence (NCMI) reported on  a pandemic spreading throughout Wuhan. The report has not been released. The existence of such a report to the White House in November was immediately denied by the head of the NCMI, though the existence of the intelligence was not. See 9 April 2020 reference below.

December

1 December - First laboratory confirmed case of coronavirus i.e. the first patient identified - Patient Zero.  (The Lancet 24.1.20)

2 December - 41 patients are identified with 2019-nCoV in a Wuhan hospital by this date. Patient Zero, and 13 others in the initial cluster of 41, are cited as having no connection with the Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market, Wuhan. The latter location was subsequently cited by Chinese authorities as the source of the outbreak, through the purchase and digestion of bats, or an infected pangolin. However, no bats were sold at the market.  (The Lancet 24.1.20).

6 December -  Five days after a man linked to Wuhan's seafood market presented with pneumonia-like symptoms, his wife contracts it, suggesting / indicating human-to-human transmission. (DT)

8 December - One of the earliest known coronavirus patients falls ill in Wuhan, China (FOX News 4/2020).

10 December

- Wei Guixan, a 57 year old female prawn seller who works at the Wuhan seafood market contracts coronavirus and starts to feel sick. Eight days later she is hospitalised. (The Wall Street Journal 6.3.20)

26 December - Evidence of a new virus emerges from Wuhan patient data. (DT)

27 December

- China's health authorities are told by Dr. Zhang Jixian from Hubei Provincial Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine that a novel disease, then affecting 180 patients, was caused by a new coronavirus. (DT)

- A patient tested in Paris on this date was subsequently shown to have had COVID-19 at this time. The origin is unknown, as the person had not travelled out of the country.

28 December - President Xi meets with the head of the WHO, a former health minister from Ethiopia. China promises to construct an $85M medical facility in that country. It is subsequently shown that China influences the action of the WHO in dealing with the pandemic.

30 December

- Dr. Ai Fen, Director of the Emergency Department of the Central Hospital of Wuhan, receives a laboratory report which states that one of her patients has a "SARS coronavirus, pseudomonas aeruginosa, 46 types of oral / respiratory colonisation bacteria". She disperses this report to her colleagues, including Dr. Li Wenliang.

Dr Li Wenliang d.7.2.20.

- A Wuhan doctor - Dr. Li Wenliang - raises the alarm on the coronavirus via WeChat. Patients were already being treated under quarantine, indicating that the virus was contagious, and he sought to warn colleagues. Two days later he is arrested by the Public Security Bureau in Wuhan, plus his family is put under surveillance. He is forced to sign a document which states that he is a "rumour monger". (FOX)

- Wuhan Health Commission issues an internal notice regarding a pneumonia of unknown cause.

- Shi Zhengli claims (Scientific American, 11 March 2020) that the Wuhan Institute of Virology received its first patient samples for testing and identification of the then "unknown" virus on this date. This seems strange, to say the least, considering all the events and research that had taken place and been carried out since mid November in Wuhan, with the first laboratory test results identifying a coronavirus received almost a month earlier, on 1 December.

31 December

- China first officially alerts the WHO's Beijing office of a "pneumonia of unknown cause" which is sickening dozens of people in Wuhan. (FOX)

- Taiwan warns the WHO about possible human-to-human transmission of a new (novel) coronavirus. (FOX). China opposes Taiwan's participation in the WHO.

- Chinese internet authorities begin censoring terms from social media such as 'Wuhan Unknown Pneumonia'. (DT) The coverup begins in earnest.

- Wuhan Health Commission issues a public statement connecting the pneumonia outbreak with the local seafood / wet market. It also states "no human to human transmission" and no effect on medical personnel. It disregards the evidence that over one third of cases were unrelated to the wet market, thereby likely covering up the true source of the outbreak.

- An Expert Panel visits Wuhan and sets criteria for identification of the new coronavirus, with a link to the wet market nominated as one of the necessary criteria. This therefore excludes all cases not related to the wet market from being recognised and entered into the official statistics.

2020

January

1 January

- Eight Wuhan doctors who warned about the new virus are arrested by Wuhan police, detained, publically condemned and forced to confess to "fabricating, disseminating and spreading rumors". These included Dr. Li Wenliang.

- Dr. Ai Fen is also severely rebuked by the hospital board for "spreading rumours". She is told: "You are the sinner who affects the stability and unity of Wuhan. You are the culprit that undermines the development of Wuhan". She later states on 11 March: “If I had known what was to happen, I would not have cared about the reprimand. I would have fucking talked about it to whoever, where ever I could.”

- The Wuhan wet market is closed and cleaned. This results in the removal of important evidence regarding the possible origin of the / an outbreak there.

2 January - Professor Yan-Yi Wang, Head of Wuhan Institute of Virology P4 Lab, imposes on all staff a prohibition on the disclosure of any and all information related to the Wuhan unknown pneumonia, by order of the National Health Commission. Wang is a scientist and high ranking politician.

3 January

- China's top health authority - the National Health Commission - issues a gag order on all research, papers and statements, and the destruction of samples, related to the coronavirus.

- The National Health Commission also issues a non-specific, private warning to medical officials on how to deal with an outbreak of a pandemic. This information does not correspond to public pronouncements.

- China informs the US and gives daily updates to the WHO.

- Robert Redfield, head of the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, speaks to Gao Fu, head of the Chinese equivalent. Fu breaks down and tells Redfield of the seriousness of the outbreak.

- US President Trump receives daily brief which refers to the COVID-19 outbreak in China.

5 January

- Wuhan Municipal Health Commission stops releasing daily updates on the new coronavirus cases. This continues until 18 January. There is no explanation for the silence, though it is likely related to the 3 January censorship decree.

- 武汉市卫生健康委员会关于不明原因的病毒性肺炎情况通报 [Situation notice about the mysterious viral pneumonia from Wuhan Municipal Health Commission], Wuhan Municipal Health Commission, 5 January 2020. URL: http://wjw.wuhan.gov.cn/front/web/showDetail/2020010509020.

- Professor Zhang Yongzhen's laboratory in Shanghai Public Health Clinical Centre - Biosafety Level 3 Laboratory - completes identification of the coronavirus genome and reports to the National Health Commission, with recommendations for prevention measures.

- Pneumonia of unknown cause – China, World Health Organization, 5 January 2020. URL: https://www.who.int/csr/don/05-january-2020-pneumonia-of-unkown-cause-china/en.

6 January 

- Trump administration offers to send a US medical team to China to help. China says no. 

- US CDC issues cautionary travel notice re Wuhan.

7 January

- Paper submitted to Nature: A new coronavirus associated with Wuhan respiratory disease in China. Published on 3 February. Points out that the coronavirus is closely related to two viruses sampled from bats in Zhoushan by scientists attached to the People's Liberation Army.

- According to the Chinese government, Premier Xi Jinping first provided 'instructions' regarding the virus on this date.

- A 69 year old patient subject to surgery at Wuhan Union Hospital subsequently infects 14+ hospital staff with the coronavirus.

8 January - US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues alert notice on Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.

10 January

- People's Republic of China (PRC) official Wang Guangfa says the outbreak is "under control" and mostly a "mild condition." Xinhua, 10 January, 2020. URL: http://www.xinhuanet.com/2020-01/10/c_1125445340.htm.

- The full genome sequence of the novel coronavirus is publically released by Professor Zhang Yongzhen's laboratory in Shanghai, in association with various Chinese research institutes and through Professor Edward Holmes of the University of Sydney.

- Dr. Li begins coughing, suggesting symptoms of the virus.

11 January

- China reports first death in new pneumonia outbreak, South China Morning Post, 11 January 2020.

- 专家称武汉不明原因的病毒性肺炎可防可控 [Experts claimed that Wuhan mysterious viral pneumonia can be prevented and controlled], Xinhua, 11 January 2020. URL: http://www.xinhuanet.com/local/2020-01/11/c_1125448549.htm.

12 January

- Professor Zhang Yongzhen's laboratory in Shanghai Public Health Clinical Centre - Biosafety Level 3 Laboratory - is closed by authorities for "rectification", two days after it is involved in sharing the full genomic sequence data with the world for the first time.

- Novel Coronavirus — China, World Health Organization, 12 January 2020. URL: https://www.who.int/csr/don/12-january-2020-novel-coronavirus-china/en/.

13 January - First coronavirus case reported in Thailand, with a link to Wuhan.

14 January - At a closed meeting, PRC National Health Commission chief Ma Xiaowei privately warns colleagues that the virus is likely to develop into a major public health event and is "the most severe challenge since SARS".

15 January

- Chinese CDC privately warns regional hospitals of a novel coronavirus spread and announces a plan for dealing with it, including treatment.

- Wuhan CDC states: There is no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission. Possibility of limited H-to-H transmission not ruled out. Low risk of sustained H-to-H transmission.

17 January - US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues updated alert notice on Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.

18 January - Second Expert Panel meeting at Wuhan. Members question the origin link to the wet market.

20 January

- The Chinese government officially acknowledges the coronavirus, following on 6 weeks of suppression.

- Premier Xi Jinping first mentions the coronavirus in the media, and points to "the timely release of information" i.e. the state suppression of information.

- Further suppression of information relating to the coronavirus and it's spread is implemented.

- 83 year old Dr Zhong Nanshan, a veteran expert on SARS, confirmed on state television that the virus can spread between humans.

- Shi Zhengli team paper submitted to Nature: A pneumonia outbreak associated with a new coronavirus of probably bat origin. She asserts therein a natural origin, not a lab origin. Published on 3 February.

- US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues warning note on Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.

21 January

- Science China - Life Sciences paper from China, based on research since 2007, identifies S (spike) protein which enable human transmission of coronavirus, like the SARS virus.

- Tan, Wenjie, et al., A Novel Coronavirus Genome Identified in a Cluster of Pneumonia Cases — Wuhan, China 2019−2020,  CCDC Weekly, 21 January 2020. URL: http://weekly.chinacdc.cn/en/article/id/a3907201-f64f-4154-a19e-4253b453d10c.

- A new drug, Remdesivir, provided for free by the US to China for Wuhan coronavirus treatment, is patented by the Wuhan Institute of Virology. It is later stated that Remdesivir and other drugs being used in the treatment of COVID-19 can cause liver damage and partially explain the turning of skin brown by patients. Blood clotting and strokes are also symptoms of the virus (Klok 10.4.20).

- Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison first mentions the SARS-like virus in Wuhan.

- Epidemiologist Zhong Nanshan issues sober warning re virus on Chinese television.

- 锺南山：武汉肺炎有人传人现象 [Zhong Nanshan: There is human to human transmission phenomenon regarding Wuhan Pneumonia], Takungpao, 21 January 2020. URL: http://www.takungpao.com/news/232108/2020/0121/408023.html.

- First US case of Covid-19 reported.

22 January - Peking University Hospital's Guangfa Wang reports his own infection with COVID-19 is suspected to have resulted from eye contact during an inspection at Wuhan. (Bjnew 22.2.20)

23 January

- Wuhan lock-down. 5 million residents and visitors leave the area in the 2 weeks beforehand. Of those, some 60,000 travel to 382 cities around the world.

- Antoine Izambard article on French-Chinese cooperation in Wuhan to establish the P4 Laboratory in 2013. Eventually completed in 2017. By this time, the French had concluded that the Chinese were conducting biochemical weapons experiments.

- Ghebreyesus, Tedros A., WHO Director-General's statement on the advice of the IHR Emergency Committee on Novel Coronavirus, World Health Organization, 23 January 2020. URL: https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-statement-on-the-advice-of-the-ihr-emergency-committee-on-novel-coronavirus.

- Patents being shared online are not related to new virus in China, Snopes / AAP Medical, 23 January 2020. URL: https://www.snopes.com/ap/2020/01/23/patents-being-shared-online-are-not-related-to-new-virus-in-china/.

24 January

- Travel bans are implemented for Hubei's 60 million residents.

- Officials in Beijing  prevent the Wuhan Institute of Virology from sharing sample isolates with the University of Texas.

- Chen Wang et al., A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern, The Lancet, 395(10223), P470-473, 24 January 2020.

- Lancet article: Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China, Lancet, 395(10322), 24 January 2020. Questions whether the origin of the virus was the wet market. Subsequent papers in Lancet and New England Journal of Medicine also state this.

- The new coronavirus in China might have jumped to people from snakes, The Conversation, 24 January 2020. Updated 14 February.

25 January

- Australia records its first coronavirus case.

26 January

- Wuhan wet market becomes the official source of the virus following internal analysis. The Institute of Virology CDC announced that 33 of the 585 environmental samples from the web market contained coronavirus, therefore it was the source, being derived from wild animals sold at the market.

- Wuhan seafood market may not be source of novel virus spreading globally, Science, 26 January 2020. Comment on The Lancet article of 24 January.

- 微信散布疫情谣言 将进行限期或永久封禁处理 [Spreading rumors of the epidemic situation on WeChat will be banned [from WeChat] for a limited time or permanently], Xinhua, 26 January 2020. URL: http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/2020-01/26/c_1125503796.htm.

27 January

- China suspends group travel to foreign countries.

- Wuhan's mayor speaks of centralised suppression regarding information on the coronavirus in his city. 

- United States Centre for Disease Control first learns of cluster of 27 pneumonia / coronavirus cases.

29 January

- Shi Zhengli et al., Bat coronaviruses in China, Viruses, 11(3), 29 January 2019. 

30 January - Roujian Lu et al., Genomic characterisation and epidemiology of 2019 novel coronavirus: implications for virus origin and receptor binding, The Lancet, 395(10224), P565-574, 30 January 2020. Lancet paper indicates relation to bat coronavirus.

31 January

- Prashant Pradhan et al., Uncanny similarity of unique inserts in the 2019-nCoV spike protein to HIV-1 gp120 and Gag, bioRx - The Preprint Server for Biology, 31 January 2020. It had four new sequences inserted which were HIV sequences available on GENBANK. It includes gp41 which affects the immune system and may explain the severity of COVID-19. This paper suggests a laboratory origin for the virus. This paper was subsequently withdrawn, subject to reassessment.

- Praise for Chinese doctors who blew coronavirus whistle, The Australian, Sydney, 31 January 2020.

- President Trump bans entry by people from China.

February

1 February

- 'Hug A Chinese' day in Italy - part of an anti-racism campaign. It inadvertently leads to spreading of the virus.

- Australia bans entry for all travellers from China. It receives criticism for this from China and the WHO.

2 February

- Shi Zhengli unlocks the genome sequence of the new coronavirus.

- Shi Zhengli posts on WeChat: The 2019 novel coronavirus is a punishment by nature to humans' unsanitary lifestyles. I promise with my life that the virus has nothing to do with the lab. (India Today 3.5.20)

3 February 

- Dr Wu Xiaohua stated that Shi Zhengli's haphazard laboratory management may have let the Wuhan virus to leak from the lab. Quote: "This transformation, which can only be completed in the laboratory, is not complicated and the technology is mature".

- Shi Zhengli et al., A pneumonia outbreak associated with a new coronavirus of probable bat origin, Nature, 579 2020, 270-273.

4 February - Chairman of Duoyi, Xu Bo, stated that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was suspected of manufacturing and leaking the Wuhan virus.

5 February

- War on coronavirus takes its toll on Wuhan, Australian Financial Review, 5 February 2020.

- Shih, Gerry & Knowles, Hannah, A Chinese doctor was one of the first to warn about coronavirus. He got detained — and infected, The Washington Post, 5 February 2020. URL: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/02/04/chinese-doctor-has-coronavirus.

6 February

- China's internet watchdog tightens controls on social media platforms.

- How Wuhan lost the fight to contain the coronavirus, Nikkei Asian Review, 6 February 2020. Record of interview with Zhang Qi.

- Prof. Mackenzie, author of WHO report on the coronavirus, criticises China. The WHO head defends it.

- Cheng-wei Lu et al., 2019-nCoV transmission through ocular surface must not be ignored, The Lancet, 395(10224), 6 February 2020.

- Autopsy shows a man died in California on this date from COVID-19 (BBC 22.4.20). This is 3 weeks earlier than the original first death case of a man in Washington State on 29 February (Medscape Medical News 29.2.20).

7 February

- The Wuhan doctor who raised the alarm in December dies of COVID-19. He was infected by a person who was asymptomatic i.e. showed no symptoms.

- Elsie Chen, He warned of coronavirus. Here's what he told us before he died, New York Times, 7 February 2020. Interviews with Dr Li on 30 January and 1 February.

- "Top Biochemical Weapon Expert" of the People's Liberation Army, Chen Wei, officially assumes control of the Wuhan Institute of Virology P4 Laboratory.

- McNeil Jr., Donald G. & Kanno-Youngs, Zolan, C.D.C. and W.H.O. Offers to Help China Have Been Ignored for Weeks, New York Times, 7 February 2020. URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/07/health/cdc-coronavirus-china.html.

9 February

- Citizen journalist and local businessman Fang Bin disappears.

-  Hundreds of bodies burned per day, funeral home staff scolded government officers as "dog officers", The Epoch Times, 9 February 2020. URL: https://www.epochtimes.com/b5/20/2/8/n11853323.htm.

10 February - Xi Jinping is shown wearing mask and dealing with the outbreak.

11 February - Lin-Fa Wang et al., From Hendra to Wuhan: What has been learned in responding to emerging zoonotic viruses (EZN), The Lancet, 395(10224), E33-E34, 11 February 2020.

12 February

- Hubei statistics blow out as the truth is revealed. Senior local Chinese Communist Party officials are sacked.

- Zhang, Phoebe & Rui, Guo, Coronavirus: Why many deaths will never appear in official figures,  South China Morning Post, 12 February 2020. URL: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3050311/its-pneumonia-everybody-china-knows-about-many-deaths-will-never.

14 February

- Chinese leader Xi Jinping calls for the inclusion of biosecurity into China's national security framework through law. Title: Ministry of Science and Technology - Strengthen the Management of Laboratories, Especially Viruses.

- Shibo Jiang and Shi Zhengli, The first Disease X is caused by a highly transmissible acute respiratory system coronavirus, Virologica Sinica, 14 February 2020.

- Here's how scientists think coronavirus spreads from bats to humans [video], VICE News, 14 February 2020. Available URL: https://youtu.be/2DsVhaXx8_I.

- Wang, Vivian, They Documented the Coronavirus Crisis in Wuhan. Then They Vanished, New York Times, 14 February 2020. URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/14/business/wuhan-coronavirus-journalists.html.

15 February

- Wuhan Institute of Virology refutes rumours that female graduate Huang Yanling (Microbiology / Xi'an Jiaotong University / Academic) was Patient Zero and had died. However, her photograph, CV and thesis were all removed from the official WIV website.

- 习近平：在中央政治局常委会会议研究应对新型冠状病毒肺炎疫情工作时的讲话 [Xi Jinping: Speech at the meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee when studying the response to the new coronavirus pneumonia],  Xinhua, 15 February  2020. URL: http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/leaders/2020-02/15/c_1125578886.htm.

17 February - Wuhan Institute of Virology researcher, Chen Quanjiao, stated that the Director General of the Institute, Wang Yanji, was suspected of leaking the virus.

24 February

- Head of WHO coronavirus mission praises China for is transparency.

- China bans the sale and eating of wildlife. 

- Chinese CDC issues report on 72,314 coronavirus cases.

26 February - A citizen journalist is arrested after reporting on the Wuhan outbreak.

27 February - PM Morrison points to global pandemic.

28 February

- Zhuang, Pinghui, Chinese laboratory that first shared coronavirus genome with world ordered to close for ‘rectification’, hindering its Covid-19 research, South China Morning Post, 28 February 2020. URL: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3052966/chinese-laboratory-first-shared-coronavirus-genome-world-ordered.

29 February - Gao, Yu, et al., In Depth: How Early Signs of a SARS-Like Virus Were Spotted, Spread, and Throttled,  Caixin, 29 February 2020. URL: https://www.caixinglobal.com/2020-02-29/in-depth-how-early-signs-of-a-sars-like-virus-were-spotted-spread-and-throttled-101521745.html.

March

2 March - Bostock, Bill, China Enacted a Sweeping New Law That Bars People from Posting Negative Content Online, and It Could Be Used to Suppress Coronavirus News, Business Insider, 2 March 2020. URL: https://www.businessinsider.com/china-internet-ban-criticism-could-suppress-coronavirus-news-2020-3.

6 March - Page, Jeremy, Wenxin, Fan, & Khan, Natasha. How It All Started: China’s Early Coronavirus Missteps, The Wall Street Journal, 6 March 2020. URL: https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-it-all-started-chinas-early-coronavirus-missteps-11583508932.

10 March - Xi Jinping visits Wuhan.

11 March

- WHO declares a global pandemic.

- Qiu, Jane, How China's 'Bat Woman' hunted down viruses from SARS to the new coronavirus, Scientific American, 11 March 2020 [updated 24 April 2020]. Available URL: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-chinas-bat-woman-hunted-down-viruses-from-sars-to-the-new-coronavirus1/.

- Lily Kuo,  Coronavirus: Wuhan [Dr. Ai Fen] doctor speaks out against [Chinese] authorities, The Guardian, 11 March 2020.

12 - China suggests virus may have originate in the US.

13 March

- Josephine Ma, Coronavirus: China's first confirmed COVID-19 case traced back to November 17, South China Morning Post, 13 March 2020. May have been 55 yr old Hubei resident.

- First COVID-19 case happened in November, China government records show - report, The Guardian, 13 March 2020.

- Professor Giuseppe Remuzzi argues that COVID-19 began spreading in Italy before China. COVID-19 and Italy: What Next?, The Lancet, 13 March 2020. URL: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30627-9/fulltext.

19 March - Taiwan says WHO failed to act on coronavirus transmission warning, Financial Times, 19 March 2020. URL: https://www.ft.com/content/2a70a02a-644a-11ea-a6cd-df28cc3c6a68.

23 March - Wuhan denying virus tests to keep numbers down, RTHI.HK, 23 March 2020. URL: https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1516240-20200323.htm.

25 March - Bernstein, Richard, Why the World's Doing a Double-Take on China's No-New-Infections Claim, RealClearInvestigations, 25 March 2020. URL: https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2020/03/25/doing_a_double-take_on_chinas_no-new-infection_claim_122944.html.

27 March - 'Patient Zero' at Wuhan market identified, The Chronicle, 27 March 20202.

30 March - Shi Zhengli et al., Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 (previously 2019-nCoV) infection by a highly potent pan-coronavirus fusion inhibitor targeting its spike protein that harbors a high capacity to mediate membrane fusion, Cell Research, 30, 2020, 343-355.

Disposal of bodies, Iran, April 2020. Source: Thailand Medical News.

April

1 April - Wadhams, Nick and Jennifer Jacobs, China Concealed Extent of Virus Outbreak, U.S. Intelligence Says, Bloomberg, 1 April 2020. URL: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-01/china-concealed-extent-of-virus-outbreak-u-s-intelligence-says.

2 April - Barnes, Julian E, C.I.A. Hunts for Authentic Virus Totals in China, Dismissing Government Tallies, New York Times, 2 April 2020. URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/02/us/politics/cia-coronavirus-china.html.

5 April - Matthew Henderson et al., Coronavirus Compensation: Assessing China's Potential Liability and Avenues for Legal Response, Henry Jackson Society, London, 4 April 2020, 44p. Report.

6 April - Dave Makichuk, Wuhan lab virus leak 'no longer discounted': Cobra, Asia Times, 6 April 2020.

8 April - Phillip, Jodh, Tracking Down the Origin of the Wuhan Coronavirus [video], The Epoch Times, New York, 8 April 2020. Available URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Le_rfTdayLs.

9 April - Josh Margolin and James Gordon Meek, Intelligence report warned of coronavirus as early as November [2019], ABC News, 9 April 2020. URL: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/intelligence-report-warned-coronavirus-crisis-early-november-sources/story?id=70031273&fbclid=IwAR0vQIpnxT9oUW3gTd3OQnC3MVevCc6IGosHrhz807Q-F7w2Xae4aCs350o.

10 April

- Incidence of thrombotic complications in critically ill ICU patients with COVID-19, Thrombosis Research, 10 April 2020. Incidences of blood clotting and stroke.

- The Coronavirus Cover-Up: A Timeline, Situation Brief, Victim of Communism Memorial Foundation, China Studies Program, 10 April 2020. Available URL: https://www.victimsofcommunism.org/sb/chinese-communist-party-world-health-organization-culpability-in-coronavirus-pandemic.

14 April - Josh Rogin, State Department cables warned of safety issues at Wuhan lab studying bat coronaviruses, Washington Post, 14 April 2020.

15 April - Did the coronavirus come from a lab in Wuhan? Here's the experts view, The Feed [webpage], SBS, Sydney, 15 April 2020. Updated 5 May.

16 April - Statement from Prof Edward Holmes on the SARS-CoV-2 virus, News, University of Sydney, 16 April 2020.

17 April - Wuhan belatedly raises its official fatalities count by 1290 - a 50% increase.

21 April - Pepe Escobar, What did US intel really know about the 'Chinese' virus?, Strategic Culture Foundation [website], 21 April 2020. URL: https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2020/04/21/what-did-us-intel-really-know-about-chinese-virus/.

May

1 May

- Scientific American article includes interview with Shi Zhengli who wonders whether the virus escaped from her laboratory, as there was a sample there with 96% correlation with COVID-19. Originally published on 11 March. Available URL: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-chinas-bat-woman-hunted-down-viruses-from-sars-to-the-new-coronavirus1/.

- Evidence builds coronavirus came from a Chinese lab [Video], Sky News, Australia, 1 May 2020. Duration: 27.08 minutes.

2 May - China's Batty Science, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 2 May 2020. Extensive report on the origins of COVID-19 and suggestion of a laboratory origin.

9 May - Cameron Stewart and Will Glasgow, 1) Breaking down China's great wall of silence; 2) How China rewrote coronavirus history, 3) A Noah's ark of wild animals; 4) 'The situation has changed radically'; 5) 'They couldn't put out the fire', The Australian, 9 May 2020.

10 May - China's President Xi Jinping 'personally asked WHO to hold back information about human-to-human transmission and delay a global pandemic warning' at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, bombshell report claims, The Daily Mail, 10 May 2020.

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Last updated: 6 July 2020
Michael Organ