MERS developed as bio-weapon ‘plausible’

RIYADH: It was plausible that the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus was developed as a biological weapon, but there is also no doubt that it has been found in camels, an official from the Ministry of Health said here recently.
Abdullah Asiri, the ministry’s undersecretary for preventive health, said that the virus has a limited geographic spread and the source of it is known, but this does not rule out the possibility of it having been developed as a weapon.
The ministry would have to verify any information suggesting this was the case, Asiri was quoted as saying by a local publication recently. He said researchers from the United States have confirmed the relationship between camels and the virus.
Ali Al-Barrak, a member of the Scientific Consultative Council, said it was possible for a disease to originate from sources not known to the medical community, but an investigation would have to confirm or disprove this possibility.
Asiri said that the government would not allow people to sacrifice camels during this year’s Haj. All camels would be prevented from entering the holy sites, he said.
He said the virus has existed in the Kingdom for more than 30 years but did not spread to humans. This only took place about four years ago. He said that 74 percent of camels have antibodies for the MERS virus, which shows that they were infected at some point in their lives.
Asiri said that there have now been 78 cases of people with MERS found at the National Guard hospital, with the disclosure of seven more cases. He said that the government would pay SR500,000 to the family of every person who died from the virus, including foreigners.
The virus has killed 513 people out of 1,205 cases in the country since June 2012.