Initially dismissed as a conspiracy theory, the hypothesis that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, may have come from a laboratory accident has been gaining traction in recent weeks. While the World Health Organization has said the virus probably crossed into humans from animals, no definitive proof of any theory has yet been found. That’s why we need a proper investigation into the origin of the pandemic that definitively establishes where the virus came from, write Virginie Courtier and Etienne Decroly.

A Belarusian fighter jet intercepted a flight carrying a Belarusian opposition journalist and 132 other passengers and forced it down in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, on May 23. When the journalist was arrested upon landing, it became clear that Belarus’s repressive leader, Alexander Lukashenko, had conducted a state-sponsored hijacking to quash dissent. The incident infuriated governments in Europe and the US – but not Russian leader Vladimir Putin whose defiant support of the rogue Belarusian regime adds yet another contentious topic to President Joe Biden’s agenda in a U.S.-Russia summit planned for June 16. Belarus expert Tatsiana Kulakevich provides insights.