What’s new: Two members of an international expert team that was set to arrive in the city of Wuhan Thursday to examine the origin of the Covid-19 pandemic tested positive for IgM antibodies in Singapore, suggesting they had been infected by the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Twitter.
The two members will remain in Singapore and complete retesting, while the rest of the team of 13 scientists has arrived in Wuhan and “will begin their working immediately during a two-week quarantine protocol for international travelers.”
Prior to traveling, all team members had multiple negative results for PCR, a test used to detect active infection, and antibody tests for Covid-19 in their home countries, the WHO said.
Why it matters: The WHO experts set off on their journey to China after the Chinese National Health Commission (NHC) gave its green light on Monday.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had expressed disappointment last week over Beijing’s alleged delay in granting entry to the international team of experts who had been due to set off in early January.
In response, China’s foreign ministry said that the delay was because “necessary procedures need to be fulfilled and relevant specific arrangements need to be made.”
Contact reporter Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com) and editor Yang Ge (geyang@caixin.com)
