March 12, 2020 / 3:13 PM / 4 days ago

China government spokesman says U.S. army might have brought virus to China

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian wrote on his Twitter account on Thursday that the U.S. military might have brought the coronavirus to the Chinese city of Wuhan, which has been hardest hit by the outbreak.

“When did patient zero begin in US? How many people are infected? What are the names of the hospitals? It might be US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. Be transparent! Make public your data! US owe us an explanation!” Zhao tweeted in English.

(This story corrects typo in headline to “brought” not “bought”)

Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Mark Heinrich

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