US led covert anti-vaccination campaign to undermine China's COVID efforts: report | Coronavirus pandemic News

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the US military launched a covert campaign to counter what it perceived as China's growing influence in the Philippines, a country particularly hard hit by the deadly virus, an investigation finds from the Reuters news agency. .

Using fake internet accounts designed to impersonate Filipinos, the military's propaganda efforts have morphed into an anti-vaccination campaign, Reuters reported in an article published Friday. Social media posts decried the quality of face masks, test kits and the first vaccine that would be available during the Sinovac inoculation in the Philippines and China.

The clandestine operation has not been previously reported. It aimed to sow doubt about the safety and effectiveness of vaccines and other life-saving aid provided by China, according to the Reuters investigation.

It identified at least 300 accounts on X, formerly Twitter, that matched descriptions shared by former U.S. military officials familiar with the operation. Almost all of them were created in mid-2020 and centered around the tagline #Chinaangvirus Tagalog for China is the virus.

COVID comes from China and the VACCINE also comes from China, don’t trust China! a typical tweet from July 2020 read. The words were displayed alongside a photo of a syringe next to a Chinese flag and a chart of soaring infections. Another article said: From China PPE, face mask, vaccine: FALSE. But the Coronavirus is real.

After Reuters questioned X about the accounts, the social media company removed the profiles, determining they were part of a coordinated bot campaign based on activity patterns and internal data.

The US anti-vax military effort began in spring 2020 and expanded beyond Southeast Asia before ending in mid-2021.

The Pentagon tailored the campaign to local audiences in Central Asia and the Middle East using a combination of fake social media accounts across multiple platforms to spread fear of Chinese vaccines among Muslims at a time when the virus was killing dozens thousands of people every day.

A key part of the strategy: amplifying the controversial claim that because vaccines sometimes contain pork gelatin, the Chinese shots could be considered prohibited under Islamic law.

The military program began under former President Donald Trump and continued months into Joe Biden's presidency, even after alarmed social media executives warned the new administration that the Pentagon was peddling COVID misinformation , Reuters said.

The Biden White House issued an executive order in spring 2021 banning the anti-vax effort, which also disparaged vaccines produced by other rivals, and the Pentagon launched an internal review.

Spokespeople for Trump and Biden did not respond to requests for comment on the clandestine program, Reuters reported.

A senior Defense Department official acknowledged that the U.S. military has engaged in covert propaganda to denigrate the Chinese vaccine in developing countries, but the unnamed official declined to provide details.

A Pentagon spokeswoman said the U.S. military uses various platforms, including social media, to counter these malign influence attacks targeting the United States, its allies and partners. She alleged that China launched a disinformation campaign to falsely accuse the United States of being responsible for the spread of COVID-19.

Dismayed, disappointed, disillusioned

In an email, China's Foreign Ministry said it has long maintained that the U.S. government is manipulating social media and spreading false information.

A spokesperson for the Philippines' health ministry said Reuters' findings deserve to be studied and heard by the relevant authorities in the countries concerned.

Some U.S. public health experts have condemned the Pentagon program, saying it puts civilians at risk for potential geopolitical gain.

I don't think it's defensible, said Daniel Lucey, an infectious disease specialist at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth Colleges. I am extremely dismayed, disappointed and disillusioned to learn that the US government would do this.

Efforts to stoke fear over Chinese vaccinations risked undermining overall public trust in government health initiatives, including U.S.-made vaccines that later became available, Lucey and others said .

Although Chinese vaccines have been found to be less effective than U.S. vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, all have been approved by the World Health Organization. Sinovac did not respond to a request for comment.

It should have been in our best interest to get as many vaccines into people's arms as possible, said Greg Treverton, former chairman of the U.S. National Intelligence Council, which coordinates analysis and strategy across the many agencies. Washington espionage.

What the Pentagon did, Treverton said, crosses the line.

Sources 1/ https://Google.com/ 2/ https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/6/14/pentagon-ran-secret-anti-vax-campaign-to-undermine-china-during-pandemic The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos