Beijing has never fully co-operated with international investigators, impeding the search for a definitive answer. But scientists continue their quest to establish the causes of a global health crisis that killed millions of people, caused trillions of dollars of economic damage and increased fears over the risks of virus research.

It was on January 30, 2020, that WHO declared Covid-19 a global public health emergency. The novel coronavirus would end up killing nearly seven million people. Five years on, and with Donald Trump back in the White House,

Langley joins the FBI and Energy Department in agreeing that a lab leak is the most likely source of the pandemic.

The CIA now believes the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic most likely originated from a laboratory.

It was unclear the extent to which the agency has collected new intelligence on COVID-19's origins and whether that new evidence was used to formulate the latest assessment.

The CIA says both a natural origin and a lab leak "remain plausible" as potential sources of covid-19, following a review of the pandemic's origins.

Backs Lab Leak Theory for COVID-19, but Confidence Remains Low By India Edwards HealthDay Reporter MONDAY, (HealthDay News) -- After years of speculation, the CIA has weighed in yet again: A lab leak is now considered the likely origin of the COVID pandemic.

The CIA now believes the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic most likely originated from a laboratory.

The Central Intelligence Agency with a "low confidence" has changed its stance and concluded that it's likely the COVI-19 virus was leaked from a Chinese lab before it became a global pandemic five years ago.