More than a year after a new coronavirus emerged in China, a team of experts from the World Health Organization finally arrived Thursday in the central city of Wuhan to begin hunting for its source, Chinese state media reported.
The investigation by the team of 10 scientists is a critical step in understanding how the virus jumped to humans from animals so that another pandemic can be avoided. Getting answers will most likely be difficult.
The Chinese government, notoriously wary of outside scrutiny, has repeatedly impeded the arrival of the team — and the investigation. Even in the best of circumstances, a full inquiry could take months, if not longer. The team must also navigate attempts by China to politicize the inquiry.