London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Aug 28, 2025

China’s ‘bat woman’ calls for Donald Trump to apologise over claim coronavirus leaked from Wuhan lab

China’s ‘bat woman’ calls for Donald Trump to apologise over claim coronavirus leaked from Wuhan lab

Shi Zhengli tells Science magazine that US President should say sorry for linking the research institute to the Covid-19 pandemic. Researcher also hits out at US government for stopping funding of joint project with New York-based EcoHealth Alliance

A leading scientist at the Wuhan laboratory at the centre of claims it was the source of the Covid-19 outbreak has called for an apology from Donald Trump.

Shi Zhengli, who directs the Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, also hit out the US government for stopping funding for joint research with US scientists.

She told Science magazine that investigations had ruled out the possibility that the virus had escaped from the laboratory – a theory promoted by some US officials, including Trump himself.

She denied that she or members of her team had been in contact with the Sars-CoV-2 virus before it was detected in the city late last year, saying: “The US President Trump’s claim that Sars-CoV-2 was leaked from our institute totally contradicts the facts.

“It jeopardises and affects our academic work and personal life. He owes us an apology.”

Shi, nicknamed China’s “bat woman” for her research on coronaviruses in the mammals, also condemned the decision by the National Institutes of Health’s decision in April to stop funding her joint research with the New York-based EcoHealth Alliance.

Shi and the head of the alliance, Peter Daszak, had been studying how coronaviruses move from bats to humans and have so far made some important discoveries.

“We don’t understand the NIH termination of funding support for our collaborative project and feel it is absolutely absurd,” she said.

Shi defended her work in an interview with China’s state broadcaster in May after conspiracy theories gained popularity, including a claim – widely rejected by scientists – that it had been engineered at the lab.



But Trump and other US officials have also promoted a theory that the virus accidentally escaped from the laboratory without offering evidence.

The origins of the virus remains unknown, although scientists generally believe it originated in bats and jumped to humans via an intermediate host.

But Shi's high-security laboratory, the Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which handles the most deadly pathogens, became the target of speculation due to its Wuhan location.

Science sent Shi a series of questions two months ago, but only received her response on July 15. Her lengthy statement was published in the magazine on Saturday.

Shi said in her reply that she and her colleagues had not known of the virus’s existence until they started investigating a mystery new illness that had emerged in Wuhan in December.

She also dismissed rumours that an infected member of her team had triggered the pandemic, saying all the staff and students in her lab had been tested recently and no one gave a positive result.



She is uncertain where the virus comes from exactly, but echoed recent studies that said the Huanan Seafood Market, which many of the first patients have links to, may not have been where it originated.

“We detected Sars-CoV-2 nucleic acids in environmental samples from sources such as rolling door handles, the ground and sewage in that market, but we did not detect any Sars-CoV-2 nucleic acids in frozen animal samples,” she said.

“The Huanan seafood market may just be a crowded location where a cluster of early novel coronavirus patients were found”.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
×