Dana Al Emam and Majdi Goussous

Akeed – Arab media reported that a British scientist and astrophysicist predicted 17 years ago that a biological catastrophe would kill a million people in 2020. However, Akeed found these claims to be misleading and inaccurate. Akeed investigated the matter after receiving several requests to verify the claim.

Arab media published articles about the predictions of British scientist Martin Reese that there would be a biological catastrophe in 2020 under titles like: “Surprise: this scientist predicted that a virus would kill a million people in 2020,” and “Over 17 years ago a British scientist predicted that a biological catastrophe would kill a million people. Did he mean corona?”.

Reese’s predictions were taken from his book Our Final Hour, published in 2003. On page 74 Reese writes: “I bet a thousand dollars that in the year 2020 there will be a biological catastrophe that will kill a million people. I hope I lose this bet, but I don’t think I will.” Reese did not provide any details to demonstrate the accuracy of his prediction.

After examining the content of the book, it became clear to Akeed that Reese, who published the book shortly after 9/11, was convinced that “terrorist organizations” would be behind the development of biological weapons. This prediction is inconsistent with the reality that coronavirus has spread all over the world, and is not linked to terrorist organizations.

Akeed found that the media misquoted Reese. Many quotations have been exposed as fraudulent, such as the following quotation: “The most important threats to humanity are nuclear terrorism, genetically modified deadly viruses, and genetic engineering that alters human nature.”

Akeed has previously investigated claims published in local media outlets that a novel, some 40 years ago, predicted the spread of coronavirus in 2020. Akeed also found these claims to be inaccurate.

Once again, Akeed calls upon the media to verify the accuracy of information from secondary sources, like books and articles, especially if written in a foreign language, before republishing it, in order to avoid misleading readers.