Smallpox
 Smallpox  (disease, bioweapon)   | |
|---|---|
| Interest of | • Exercise Mataika • Operation Dark Winter • Pacific Eclipse |
| Deadly virus eradicated in the wild after a vaccination campaign. | |
Smallpox, a disease caused by the variola virus, has an IFR of around 30%. It was eradicated in the wild after a programme of vaccination. Only two labs in the world are authorized to store it, one in Russia and one at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.[1]
Lab leak
The last smallpox death was due to a lab leak in the UK.
Bill Gates and smallpox terror attacks
In November 2021, Bill Gates stated that governments must prepare for future pandemics and smallpox terror attacks by investing billions in research and development. He also called for the formation of a new billion-dollar World Health Organisation Pandemic Task Force. Gates suggested that the “germ-games” pandemic exercises could include preparing for acts of bioterrorism such as smallpox attacks on airports.[2]
In November 2021, vials labeled "smallpox" were found in a facility belonging to Big Pharma company Merck outside Philadelphia. 5 frozen vials labeled ‘Smallpox’ and 10 'Vaccinia' were incidentally discovered by a laboratory worker while cleaning out a freezer[1] The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation owns shares in[3] and collaborates with[4] Merck.
TPOXX
In fourth quarter of 2021, $113 Million of the drug TPOXX (tecovirimat) was delivered to the U.S. Government. The producer, SIGA Technologies, also had $13 million in foreign sales.[5] The U.S. government has procured, or has current orders for, approximately $705 million of TPOXX for national preparedness. The stock price of the company has surged after the Bill Gates warning of a smallpox attack.[6]
FDA fast tracked the approval of the drug, which is a treatment for smallpox, in 2018. Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said: "To address the risk of bioterrorism, Congress has taken steps to enable the development and approval of countermeasures to thwart pathogens that could be employed as weapons. Today’s approval provides an important milestone in these efforts. This new treatment affords us an additional option should smallpox ever be used as a bioweapon". TPOXX was developed in conjunction with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).[7]
References
- ↑ a b https://news.yahoo.com/vials-labeled-small-pox-found-in-lab-near-philadelphia-003127682.html
- ↑ https://news.yahoo.com/bill-gates-warns-smallpox-terror-000100099.html
- ↑ https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1021577629748680000
- ↑ https://www.statnews.com/pharmalot/2021/10/20/covid19-merck-gates-pill-patents-who/
- ↑ https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/SIGA-TECHNOLOGIES-INC-10830/news/Up-to-Approximately-113-Million-of-Oral-TPOXX-Targeted-for-Delivery-to-the-U-S-Government-in-the-36908708/
- ↑ https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/smallpox-drugmaker-surges-amid-fears-new-pandemic
- ↑ https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-first-drug-indication-treatment-smallpox
