Svetlana Alexievich, the Belarussian winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature, has suggested that there might be a link between wireless 5G technology and the deadly coronavirus pandemic. Though no evidence exists to suggest a link between 5G and Covid-19, Alexievich told the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Belarussian service that “scientists aren’t fully certain,” unleashing a firestorm of disappointment among social media users.

dang what a shame https://t.co/LpmeY4sDcy — Seva (@SevaUT) April 16, 2020

“We still need to fully understand whether this is the flu or whether 5G is already affecting the human immune system,” Alexievich said in the interview last week. The widely spread 5G conspiracy theory has led to a series of arson attacks on telecom towers and other infrastructure across Europe, including in Britain, Ireland, Cyprus and the Netherlands in recent weeks. The World Health Organization maintains that coronavirus cannot spread through radiowaves or 5G mobile networks.

Russia Twitter, what’s the more discouraging surprise of this week: Obama approvingly sharing that disinfo story or Alexievich flirting with 5G truthism? https://t.co/x02AOfelYc — Joshua Yaffa (@yaffaesque) April 16, 2020