this post was submitted on 16 Mar 2025
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German spy agency 'believed Covid likely started in lab' (www.bbc.com)
submitted 4 days ago by geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml to c/worldnews@lemmy.ml
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Germany's foreign intelligence service believed there was a 80-90% chance that coronavirus accidentally leaked from a Chinese lab, German media say. Two German newspapers say they have uncovered details of an assessment carried out by spy agency BND in 2020 but never published.

The intelligence service had indications that the Wuhan Institute of Virology had been carrying out experiments where viruses are modified to become more transmissible to humans for research, they say.

China repeated its denial saying the cause "should be determined by scientists" - and pointed to a World Health Organization investigation which found the lab-leak theory was "extremely unlikely".

The lab leak hypothesis has been hotly contested by scientists, including many who say there is no definitive evidence to back it up. But the once controversial theory has been gaining ground among some intelligence agencies - and the BND is the latest to entertain the theory. In January, the US CIA said the coronavirus was "more likely" to have leaked from a lab than to have come from animals.

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[–] wurzelgummidge@lemmy.ml 55 points 4 days ago (1 children)

But the once controversial theory has been gaining ground among some intelligence agencies

ie someone at the CIA who wont put their name to it, and a couple of corporate owned German newspapers who they fed it to

[–] eugenevdebs@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 3 days ago

Only because the propaganda arms got defunded, but the CIA, the biggest one, didn't.

[–] clarinet_estimator@lemm.ee 17 points 3 days ago

Are we seriously back on this again?

[–] NatakuNox@lemmy.world 47 points 4 days ago

It doesn't matter where it came from! It doesn't change the fact that the government and corporations left us die, then they picked over our carcasses.

[–] tfm@europe.pub 2 points 2 days ago

Does it really matter? Many laboratories around the world experiment with highly dangerous viruses and that one leaked. Not that I like it but it's still a fact.

[–] afronaut@slrpnk.net 17 points 3 days ago (2 children)

We’re supposed to trust spies working for nation-states that support Israel?

[–] Coding4Fun@lemmy.ml 13 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Although I think the support to Israel (which I am against too) does not play a role in the sake of this argument, I agree with you: it independent scientists couldn't find scientific evidences to support that, spies are for sure not reliable.

[–] afronaut@slrpnk.net 7 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Okay, thank you for getting that. In retrospect, I can see how my comment might be perceived as potentially antisemitic but, I’m coming from an anti-imperialist perspective. And, the West is going to keep flooding us with anti-East and anti-Middle East propaganda.

So, to me, Germany’s support of Israel and their demonization of China is one and the same.

[–] Inucune@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Not every news article and decision on the world revolves around Israel and/or Gaza.

[–] afronaut@slrpnk.net 14 points 3 days ago (2 children)

My point is we shouldn’t be trusting spy agencies working on behalf of nation states at all, which includes pushing geopolitical narratives with the aim of Western supremacy.

“The past was alterable. The past never had been altered. Oceania was at war with Eastasia. Oceania had always been at war with Eastasia.” -1984

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[–] HiddenLayer555@lemmy.ml 37 points 4 days ago (2 children)

They keep "believing" that's what happened because they have not presented any concrete evidence that can be used to get rid of that qualifier.

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[–] lorty@lemmygrad.ml 7 points 3 days ago

Oh look, fake news to make China look bad!

[–] wittycomputer@feddit.org 18 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Remember when hinting at this would get you banned from Youtube? Good times

[–] slaneesh_is_right@lemmy.org 6 points 3 days ago (1 children)

You can't even say dead or killed or rape on youtube.

[–] wisely@feddit.org 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Yeah makes me not want to watch anything on there. Wife was watching some true crime and I was so confused on why they kept saying essay (SA) and grape.

[–] stray@pawb.social 2 points 3 days ago

Can you please censor ess*y in the future so that it'll be more difficult for me to filter automatically and actually make me way more likely to get triggered? Thanks.

[–] mlg@lemmy.world 18 points 4 days ago

BBC

Go back to sleep, this is just repeat cope for failing to handle a pandemic and shifting the blame to another country.

[–] Bloomcole@lemmy.ml 18 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (5 children)

"Germany’s foreign intelligence" LOL
And who wouldn't trust the BBC mouthpiece?

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[–] davel@lemmy.ml 19 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

Reporter: [REDACTED]
Reason: misinformation

What, we’re supposed to remove UK state-affiliated media articles about German state intelligence assessments?

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[–] TacoButtPlug@sh.itjust.works 0 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

God I hate propaganda.

edit: lol at the one cunt who read my comment and was like, "how dare! propaganda is everything. "

[–] davel@lemmy.ml 5 points 4 days ago

The SARS-CoV-2 gain of function research was going on under Fauci’s watch.

Jeffrey Sachs:

[–] sittinonatoilet@sopuli.xyz 4 points 4 days ago

Two German newspapers say they have uncovered details of an assessment carried out by spy agency BND in 2020 but never published.

But the once controversial theory has been gaining ground among some intelligence agencies - and the BND is the latest to entertain the theory.