Washington DC: Outgoing US Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard has accused former Chief Medical Advisor to the US President, Dr Anthony Fauci, of funding gain-of-function research at China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology. This massive accusation by Tulsi Gabbard has spiked speculationns about the earlier intelligence assessments regarding the origins of COVID-19 pandemic.
On what she described as her final day in office, Gabbard released a tranche of declassified communications and documents that she said exposes Fauci’s role in the controversy. Announcing the release, Gabbard said the newly declassified material contains previously unseen communications that shows Fauci’s involvement in funding coronavirus research in Wuhan and his interactions with intelligence officials during the pandemic.
“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 within the Intelligence Community to suppress the truth about his actions and hide the virus’ lab-leak origins and lied to Congress while under oath in 2024. It’s time you know the truth”, Gabbard said.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) alleged that Fauci, while serving as head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), directed millions of dollars in US taxpayer funding towards gain-of-function research involving bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
The ODNI claimed that the research is “now widely viewed as the source of the unintentional lab leak that sparked the pandemic” and alleged that Fauci worked with “politicised career leadership” within the Intelligence Community to suppress information related to the virus’s origins and his role in funding the research.
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
Dr. Fauci’s statement to US Congress contradicts declassified documents
“The COVID-19 pandemic caused tremendous hardship and pain for millions of our fellow Americans and for countless people around the world. After years of lies, censorship and cover ups, the American people deserve transparency, truth and accountability”, the outgoing DNI said. She added, “The tactics used to hide the truth are straight from the deep state playbook: politicized self-serving leaders like Dr. Fauci covered up their own wrongdoing and abuses of power, manipulated intelligence, lied to Congress and undermined a duly elected President by restricting his access to vital facts needed to keep the country safe. It’s time the American people learn the real story”.
According to the ODNI, the documents were uncovered during a year-long declassification review undertaken in support of US President Donald Trump’s transparency agenda. The office said it had also gathered testimony from intelligence community whistleblowers who alleged retaliation for challenging official assessments regarding the origins of COVID-19. The release further claimed that Fauci maintained close ties with intelligence officials and played multiple roles during the pandemic, including as a government-funded researcher, adviser to intelligence agencies and a public spokesperson on pandemic policy.
The ODNI alleged that Fauci and senior intelligence officials created a “self-serving circular reporting loop” in which scientists funded by NIAID influenced intelligence assessments that were later cited publicly as evidence against the lab-leak theory. The ODNI also alleged that correspondence contained in the newly released documents contradicts Fauci’s testimony before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic in 2024.
According to the ODNI, Fauci was asked under oath whether he had communicated with intelligence agencies concerning viral research before, during or after the pandemic . Fauci replied by asserting, “not to my knowledge about COVID”. The release further cited whistleblower testimony alleging that intelligence analysts who supported the lab-leak hypothesis faced professional consequences, including marginalisation, career setbacks and intimidation.
Fauci was issued a pre-emptive pardon by Former President Joe Biden during his final hours in office in January 2025. Explaining the move at the time, President Biden said, “These are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing.” “Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety and financial security of targeted individuals and their families”, he added. Biden emphasised that the pardons did not imply wrongdoing and said, “The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense”.
Fauci, who served as the United States leading infectious disease expert for nearly four decades, has long been a target of criticism from sections of the American political right over his role during the COVID-19 pandemic. On January 2025, Trump revoked the government-funded security detail that had been provided to Fauci through the National Institutes of Health. Defending the decision, Trump said, “I think, you know, when you work for government, at some point your security detail comes off and you know, you can’t have them forever”.
Earlier declassified documents released by Gabbard on US funded biolabs
The Fauci-related disclosures follow another declassification effort by Gabbard announced on June 12, in which the Office of the Director of National Intelligence claimed it had uncovered evidence of long-standing US government funding for more than 120 biological laboratories across over 30 countries, including facilities in Ukraine. ODNI, in its prior release, claims that some of these laboratories were involved in research on hazardous pathogens and in certain cases, gain-of-function research.
The agency also alleged that information regarding the existence, locations and funding of these facilities had been withheld from the public. “Despite the obvious potential for catastrophic global impact research on dangerous pathogens in biolabs can have, politicians, so-called health professionals like Dr. Fauci and entities within the Biden administration’s national security team lied to the American people about the existence of U.S.-funded and supported biolabs and threatened those who attempted to expose the truth”, Gabbard said in the June 12 release.
(With Inputs from ANI)
