Former Chief of Infectious Disease Control Named in New Covid Documents

The U.S. Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, has in recent weeks become the center of a new controversy surrounding the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. As she departs from her post, Gabbard has released a large volume of previously classified documents that she claims reveal how the U.S. government handled issues concerning COVID-19, research in Wuhan, and former chief of infectious disease control, Anthony Fauci.

According to Gabbard, the documents indicate that Fauci had a more active role in discussions about the virus’s origin than was previously known. She also claims that the materials show connections between U.S.-funded research and activities at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.

A central part of Gabbard’s statement concerns allegations that Fauci gave misleading information to the U.S. Congress when he denied that American taxpayer dollars had funded so-called gain of function research at the Wuhan laboratory.

The documents released by Gabbard refer to an earlier whistleblower complaint and internal discussions within the intelligence community about how the issue was handled.

Fauci has for several years rejected the allegations and previously asserted that the research funded did not meet the definition of gain of function research as used by his critics. The issue has been a subject of political debate in the U.S. since the pandemic.

Disagreement Over the Origin

Gabbard’s release of documents comes as the American intelligence community still has not reached consensus on how the pandemic started. Some agencies have assessed that a laboratory leak is the most likely explanation, while others still consider a natural origin cannot be ruled out.

Today, on my final day as Director of National Intelligence, I’m releasing never-before-seen communications and documents exposing how Dr. Fauci provided millions in US taxpayer dollars to fund dangerous gain-of-function research at the Wuhan lab, worked with politicized elements… pic.twitter.com/ZMdliW4zyS

— DNI Tulsi Gabbard (@DNIGabbard) June 19, 2026

The documents that have been made public have therefore been interpreted in different ways. Gabbard contends that they strengthen suspicions that important information was withheld from the public, while critics argue the material provides no conclusive evidence for either a lab leak or intentional deception by Fauci.

Network in 30 Countries

The new covid documents come just days after Gabbard drew significant attention by releasing information about an extensive network of U.S.-funded biological laboratories worldwide. According to her office, the U.S. has for a long time funded more than 120 laboratories in over 30 countries.

Gabbard claimed that several of the labs worked with dangerous pathogens and that the public has not had full transparency regarding their activities. Among the facilities highlighted were laboratories in Ukraine.

Critics, including journalists and fact-checkers, have countered that the laboratories in question were not secret but part of international programs for biosafety, infectious disease control, and disease surveillance. They argue that Gabbard’s description risks giving a misleading impression of the operations.

The issues surrounding the Wuhan laboratory, Fauci, and U.S. funding of biological research have become some of the most polarizing debates in the U.S. after the pandemic. Gabbard’s latest document releases have therefore received significant attention in both conservative and mainstream media, while the discussion about COVID-19’s origins has once again risen high on the political agenda.