Flu virus was not lab creation, WHO says

And WHO are we to argue? I mean, wow was that fast or what? All things should be resolved so quickly. I mean, this claim came up and in like ONE DAY they looked into it, very seriously I'm sure, and swatted it down like a fly. Nope nope nope nope nothing to see. Nada zilch zero. Phew! That was easy. Hey I bet they have one of those Staples Easy Buttons too. - Ed.

Geneva, May 14 (DPA) There is no evidence to support a theory that the new influenza A(H1N1) virus was created in a laboratory, a World Health Organisation official said Thursday.
Scientists associated with the WHO had taken the theory seriously, said Keiji Fukuda, the organisation’s head of health security, and looked into the claim.

“This group of scientist believes that this hypothesis does not stand up to scrutiny,” Fukuda told reporters in Geneva, saying it was most likely a “naturally occurring virus”.

An Australian scientist, Adrian Gibbs, had submitted a paper to the WHO Saturday in which he had put forth his theory.

Fukuda said the incident was a “good example” of cross-border cooperation and scientists taking advantage of the way modern technology allows them to share information, unlike at any other time in history.

Also, the official said there were so far no signs that the virus, also known as swine flu, was showing resistance to anti-viral drugs.

Fukuda said the WHO would like to see anti-virals made available “as broadly and widely as possible”, and the organisation was working with poorer nations to achieve this. It has already distributed some 2.4 million doses to the world’s least developed countries and Mexico.

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