The coronavirus has infected more than 119,000 people since December, fuelling conspiracy theories about its origin. Many people believe the SARS-CoV-2 virus was created in a Chinese laboratory and either accidentally or purposely released into the public.
Others have claimed online the coronavirus is a warning sign of the biblical end times.
Hardline Christians point to passages in the Book of Revelation that supposedly prove COVID-19 is a prophetic plague.
Many people have also claimed coronavirus was predicted by the 16th-century physician Michel de Nostredame.
Nostradamus is believed by his followers to have accurately predicted many world events such as the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the rise of Adolf Hitler in 1933.
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Coronavirus was created in a top-secret lab in Wuhan, China
The most popular conspiracy spread on social media is the claim the novel coronavirus strain is a man-made pathogen.
One person tweeted: “If the Corona Virus isn’t a bio weapon Why are epidemiologists wearing full Hazmat suits when being around an infected person? Did they ever do that for Ebola?”
Another person said: “Coronavirus is a secret intelligence biological weapon designed to take down America’s economy and especially President Trump’s chances for re-election in 2020… the Chinese communists do not care one iota about “collateral damage” or in killing Americans…”
But these claims have been widely debunked by health officials and the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned against the spread of conspiracies.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: “At the WHO we’re not just battling the virus, we’re also battling the trolls and conspiracy theories that undermine our response.”
Coronavirus is a biblical plague foretold by the Book of Revelation
Another popular theory peddled by conspiracy theorists is the coronavirus’ supposed connection to the Bible.
We’re not just battling the virus, we’re also battling the trolls and conspiracy theories
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General
Joel Pietsch tweeted: “Ok, I’m making this clear to anyone who sees this video and this comment that only God knows that Coronavirus is the end of the world not these false prophets. Oh and one more thing look up Matthew 24:36 in the bible or online.”
Lorenzo Flavian said: “The coronavirus has just become biblical. It’s beginning to resemble bible verses from the book of revelation. I’m not a religious guy but I study everything.”
But there is no evidence to support the claim the coronavirus is biblical or a plague.
The virus has proven to have a low mortality rate and as of March 11, has killed at least 4,287 people.
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Coronavirus was predicted by Nostradamus nearly 500 years ago
Nostradamus’ followers cite the physician’s cryptic writings and poems as evidence of his supposed powers of foresight.
Nostradamus penned his visions and predictions in four-lined poems known as quatrains.
The majority of Nostradamus’ works were published in 1555 in the book Les Propheties.
In one his quatrains, Nostradamus wrote: “Near the gates and within two cities
“There will be two scourges the like of which was never seen,
“Famine within plague, people put out by steel,
“Crying to the great immortal God for relief.”
In another passage, Nostradamus wrote: “Newcomers, place built without defence,
“Place occupied then uninhabitable:
“Meadows, houses, fields, towns to take at pleasure,
“Famine, plague, war, extensive land arable.”
Sceptics, however, denounce all claims of Nostradamus’ ability to predict the future.
Brian Dunning, host of the Skeptoid podcast, said: “Nostradamus’ writings are exploited in a number of fallacious ways.
“Ambiguous and wrong translations, ‘creative’ interpretations, hoax writings, fictional accounts, and the breaking of non-existent codes within his quatrains all contribute to a vast body of work, all of it wrong, and many times the size of everything Nostradamus ever actually wrote.”
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