Guinea-Bissau police search vaccine researchers' offices over planned infant trial

Judicial police in Guinea-Bissau have searched the premises of the Bandim Health Project in the capital, Bissau, and seized a batch of hepatitis B vaccines intended for vaccinating children. The operation is linked to a planned vaccine trial on infants, developed by allies of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and described in media coverage as unethical. For now the trial is not going ahead, because government officials have not approved it.

What the police said

In a Facebook post on Monday, the police said the search was meant to clarify the circumstances surrounding the batch of vaccines. They stressed that the seizure is an investigative procedure and does not by itself indicate irregularities in the quality, safety or effectiveness of the vaccines. The investigation concerns the work of researchers Aaby and Stabell Benn.

The government's position

Health Minister Quinhin Nantote confirmed at a press conference last week that the government had not yet authorized the trial. According to Reuters, he said any scientific research involving human beings, particularly children, must strictly comply with national legislation, international ethical principles, and the competent evaluation and approval mechanisms.

When media reports claimed the trial would proceed, Nantote told The Guardian that this was not even remotely true. The trial's future therefore depends on official authorization, while the police investigation continues.