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Trump Says Intelligence Points to COVID-19's Origins in a Chinese Lab

Steve Herman

   WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump says he has a "high degree of
   confidence" the coronavirus pandemic originated in a Chinese
   laboratory, going beyond a rare, public assessment issued hours earlier
   by his top intelligence agency.

   Asked late Thursday if he has seen evidence from U.S. intelligence
   officials that COVID-19 came from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the
   president replied, "Yes, yes I have," though he declined to share any
   details.

   "I'm not allowed to tell you that," he added.

   While most scientists agree the coronavirus pandemic originated in
   Wuhan, China, there has been endless speculation about how the virus
   jumped from animals to humans, with many conspiracy theorists clinging
   to the theory that COVID-19 was engineered on purpose.

   On Thursday, however, U.S. intelligence officials said they had ruled
   out that scenario.

   The'ŻU.S. intelligence community "concurs with the wide scientific
   consensus that the COVID-19 virus was not man-made or genetically
   modified," the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said.

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