PARIS — A study on the origin of COVID-19 provided new evidence on Thursday supporting the theory that humans first caught the virus from infected animals at a Chinese market in late 2019.Nearly five years after COVID-19 first emerged, the international community has not been able to determine with certainty exactly where the virus came from.The first cases were detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, but there have been bitter disputes between proponents of the two main theories.
"These small mammals can catch similar viruses to humans, which has made them suspects for serving as an intermediate host between humans and bats, in which SARS-CoV-2 is suspected to have originated.The presence of these animals at the Huanan market had previously been disputed, despite some photographic evidence and a 2021 study.