Guinea-Bissau Police Raid Bandim Health Project Over Unethical Hepatitis B Vaccine Study

Judicial police in Guinea-Bissau raided the office of the Bandim Health Project and seized a batch of hepatitis B vaccines, highlighting concerns about the West African nation’s stability. The raid targets a controversial study that planned to withhold the vaccine from newborns.

Bandim Health Project Office Raided by Guinea-Bissau Police

The judicial police executed the raid at the Bandim Health Project office to clarify circumstances surrounding the confiscated vaccines, according to police statements shared on social media. Authorities emphasized that the seizure does not call the quality or safety of the vaccine batch into question. The organization operates on a total of $3.2 million in funding, which includes $1.6 million from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention alongside matching grants from two foundations.

The research initiative, led by Peter Aaby and Christine Stabell Benn, drew sharp international criticism for its study design. The plan involved withholding the hepatitis B vaccine from 7,000 newborns during their first six weeks of life. In Guinea-Bissau, roughly one in five adults carries the virus, and the infection proves fatal for 15% to 25% of chronically infected individuals. While newborns face high vulnerability, administering the vaccine within 24 hours of birth remains a safe and effective preventive measure.

WHO Calls Vaccine Denial Unethical

World Health Organization spokesperson Tarik Jašarević characterized any study protocol that denies participants a vaccine as unethical and capable of exposing newborns to severe, irreversible harm. Jašarević noted that the organization views birth-dose vaccination as a necessary public health intervention and has advised the local Ministry of Health on the trial’s potential impacts.

Transition Government Quinhin Nantote denied that the trial will move forward, despite project claims that the study secured approvals from both the Guinea-Bissau National Ethics Committee and the Danish Research Ethics Committee. Colette Delawalla, founder of the non-profit Stand Up for Science, pointed out that the police action reveals vulnerabilities in Guinea-Bissau, where a military coup occurred less than a year ago.

Bandim Health Project Faces Scrutiny over Local Impact

The Bandim Health Project has operated in the country for five decades under the direction of anthropologist Peter Aaby and epidemiologist Christine Stabell Benn. Stand Up for Science reported that the organization achieved little measurable improvement in local health and research capacity over that timeframe, contributing to deep local mistrust.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. previously praised the researchers, referring to them at an anti-vaccine conference as gods of vaccine research and citing their work. Stabell Benn also serves on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices hepatitis B working group, which previously voted to end recommendations for universal birth-dose administration.