Thread by @Ayjchan

It appears that the people who convened the Proximal Origin authors who staunchly dismissed a lab #OriginOfCovid may have also shaped the membership of the @WHO team that went to China and ruled a lab origin as extremely unlikely. h/t @CDommasch
s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2079…

@WHO @CDommasch On Feb 5, 2020, Farrar writes to NIH/NIAID leaders, asking for "names to be put forward into the [WHO #OriginOfCovid] Group from us and pressure on this group from your and our teams next week."

One of the Feb 1 call participants ended up on the WHO team.

@WHO @CDommasch It looks like they might've put forward the names of more participants on the Feb 1 call, but no others were selected.

The only American who made it into the WHO #OriginOfCovid team was Peter Daszak, who had orchestrated @TheLancet letter condemning lab origin hypotheses as conspiracy theories.

Signed by at least 2 of the Feb 1 call participants.

thelancet.com/journals/lance…

@TheLancet Despite the redactions, it's clear from the emails that there was intent, in Farrar's own words, for his team and the NIH/NIAID team to put "pressure" on the @WHO #OriginOfCovid group.

At the same time, they were advising the drafting of Proximal Origin.
s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2079…

None of these contributions or pressures were publicly declared.

https://twitter.com/Ayjchan/status/1481074168468844547

Yet, when a science journalist was tipped off as to the true origin story of Proximal origin, the lead authors conferred with Farrar and Fauci on how to respond to the journalist.

https://twitter.com/Ayjchan/status/1481073529248436225

The question now is how do we make sure the next phase of the @WHO #OriginOfCovid isn't subject to more of these pressures coming from parties with reasonably perceived conflicts of interest. Was its SAGO membership also determined under these influences?

Are other #OriginOfCovid commissions and investigations also being unduly influenced or under pressure from parties with conflicts of interest or with a keenness for shutting down a lab origin as a conspiracy theory or barely possible?

This gratuitous praise from a Proximal Origin author for a clearly flawed report by China+WHO now makes more sense.

Same scientist used Adobe Illustrator to beautify one of the pixelated images in the report, sans access to data, for publication in Cell.

https://twitter.com/K_G_Andersen/status/1376954932004196352

In case anyone else wants to go FOIA diving, see emails obtained by @JamesCTobias

Amidst the highly redacted emails about the Feb 1 call...

documentcloud.org/documents/2104…

@JamesCTobias Starting at page 55, you can see the Feb 1 call participant who later joined the China-WHO joint study on the #OriginOfCovid providing input on what is likely the Proximal Origin draft (Feb 9, 2020). Difficult to tell for sure because of the redactions.
documentcloud.org/documents/2104…

@JamesCTobias It's problematic that there are behind-the-scenes coordinated efforts to put out publications & reports shutting down the lab #OriginOfCovid hypothesis from as early as January 2020 - and we're only putting the pieces together in January 2022.

Waiting for reporters to report.

@JamesCTobias Giving maximum benefit of doubt, this could have been a well-intentioned effort to keep communications open with China by foolishly shutting down an investigation into a lab #OriginOfCovid for them and gaslighting the entire scientific community and people with common sense.

Giving zero benefit of doubt, this was a conspiracy to protect specialized interests in risky pathogen research and the scientific reputations tied to this work by foolishly shutting down an investigation into a lab #OriginOfCovid and gaslighting everyone with common sense.

The scientists in this mess can easily clear their names.

Release the emails without redactions; stop resisting appeals against redactions.

Share the earliest drafts of Proximal Origin.

Post a correction to Proximal Origin acknowledging all contributors.

When @ianbirrell tried to get info on Proximal Origin & these emails, Edinburgh University refused, claiming that "disclosure might ‘endanger’ the health or safety" of their scientist who was on the paper and emails.

Wth is under those redactions?
dailymail.co.uk/debate/article…