Covid-19 vaccines linked to monkeypox outbreak by conspiracy theorists

Conspiracy theorists claim that monkeypox cases are seen in countries that have vaccinated their population with AstraZeneca, which uses a chimpanzee adenovirus.

As the world reels under the after-effects of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, conspiracy theorists have now begun to link the Covid-19 vaccines to monkeypox, the cases of which have been reported in a few countries over the last two-three weeks.

Their theory? Covid-19 vaccines contain a chimpanzee virus that's causing the monkeypox outbreak.

The theory is based on the fact that the AstraZeneca vaccine developed by the University of Oxford (available in India under the label Covishield), contains a chimpanzee adenovirus vaccine vector. While there is science behind this (more on that later), conspiracy theorists are using this as yet another reason to drum up anti-vaccine sentiment.

A popular example is Alex Jones of InfoWars, who is known for spreading fake news and unaccounted claims in the US. Jones claimed that monkeypox has popped up in countries where people have been taking the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Alex Jones insanely claims certain covid vaccines are causing monkeypox: “What is AstraZeneca and J+J. They’re virus vectors that inject the genome of a chimpanzee into your cells.” Maybe Marge Greene can discuss this with him on her next appearance on the show. pic.twitter.com/xYKjd8kdid