China will not follow WHO's suggested plan on 2nd phase of Covid-19 origins study: Beijing

Vice Minister of China's National Health Commission Zeng Yixin. - AP

BEIJING (Reuters): China rejected on Thursday (July 22) a World Health Organization (WHO) plan for a second phase of an investigation into the origin of the coronavirus, which includes the hypothesis it could have escaped from a Chinese laboratory, a top health official said.

The WHO this month proposed a second phase of studies into the origins of the coronavirus in China, including audits of laboratories and markets in the city of Wuhan, calling for transparency from authorities.