A lawsuit filed by a branch of the conservative Heritage Foundation accuses the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of concealing records related to payments made to analysts who allegedly altered their findings to downplay the lab leak theory as the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conservative Think Tank Takes Legal Action
The Oversight Project, a part of the Heritage Foundation, filed a federal lawsuit against the CIA, claiming that the agency failed to comply with a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking information about analysts who were purportedly incentivized to change their stance on the pandemic’s origin.
Allegations of Analysts Receiving Payments
The lawsuit asserts that certain analysts allegedly “received monetary incentives to change their position on the origins of the virus,” and it seeks to uncover records related to these allegations.
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Demand for Transparency
The Oversight Project’s legal action demands a court order compelling the CIA to expedite the production of requested records within 20 days or as determined appropriate by the court.
Accusations of Obstruction and Secrecy
Critics argue that the Biden Administration has been non-transparent regarding the COVID-19 origin issue and that a CIA whistleblower has alleged that the agency offered payments to analysts to hinder efforts to uncover the truth.
Whistleblower’s Claims
A senior-level CIA agent reportedly informed House Republican Committee chairmen in September about payments being offered to analysts to support the theory that the virus originated from animals rather than a lab.
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Divergent Views Among Analysts
Credit: DepositPhotos
The whistleblower revealed that six out of seven members of the analyst team believed there was sufficient intelligence and science to suggest a lab origin, while one member maintained the theory of zoonotic transmission.
Alleged Monetary Incentives
The whistleblower further claimed that the six analysts who believed in a lab leak theory were offered significant monetary incentives to change their position, adding weight to the allegations.
Heritage Foundation’s FOIA Request
The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project submitted its FOIA request for records related to the internal CIA analysis in September, but it has not received the requested documents or an explanation for the delay.
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Claims About Dr. Anthony Fauci
House members have alleged that Dr. Anthony Fauci was secretly brought into CIA headquarters to influence the findings of analysts, further raising concerns about interference.
Changing Intelligence Assessments
Initially, the FBI and the Energy Department concluded that a lab leak was the most likely origin of the pandemic, but later assessments from the entire U.S. intelligence community suggested that the virus was not genetically engineered.
Biosafety and Genetic Engineering Concerns
While the intelligence report did not confirm genetic engineering, it did identify biosafety concerns and genetic engineering activities at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, where several scientists became ill in late 2019.
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U.S. Funding of Gain-of-Function Research
A Government Accountability Office report revealed that U.S. taxpayers funded over $2 million of gain-of-function research at the Wuhan lab, partly through grants from the National Institutes of Health, including Dr. Fauci’s NIAID, and the United States Agency for International Development.
Fauci’s Upcoming Deposition
Dr. Anthony Fauci is scheduled to undergo deposition before the House COVID subcommittee in January 2024 to address questions about his handling of public health inquiries during and after the pandemic, as well as controversies that have arisen.
Lab Leak Theory Supported by Some
Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe testified that the “lab leak theory” was the most credible explanation for the pandemic and criticized the spillover theory as lacking evidence.
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Global Toll of the Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the loss of nearly 7 million lives worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, making the origins of the virus a matter of significant importance.
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