WHO expert :China likely origin of coronavirus -NHK WORLD -JAPAN -1 hour ago
A World Health Organization expert says it's logical to think that the coronavirus originated in China, since it resembles a virus detected in another part of the country years ago.
Dr. Peter Ben Embarek told NHK that a virus closest to the new coronavirus was detected in a bat cave in China's Yunnan province in 2013.
He said all this would make it more logical that the virus originated in parts of China.
Ben Embarek stressed the need to investigate in and around Wuhan and more carefully examine the first cases reported there.
The expert said it's necessary to interview people in and outside of the city again to see if there were any other cases.
He noted China has a well-advanced public health system and that there is still a lot of samples from last year. He suggested investigators may be able to find traces of the virus in them.
Ben Embarek said the dispatch of an international investigation team to China may come in the coming weeks or months, but added that the date is still "very uncertain."
He emphasized," we're not going to wait six months."
