In one of the most sweeping crackdowns on underground Christianity in recent years, Chinese authorities have formally arrested 18 leaders of the Beijing Zion Church, according to the Christian rights organization ChinaAid. The arrests finalize detentions that began in early October as part of a multi-province operation targeting unregistered Christian groups.
The detainees are being charged with “illegally using information networks,” a vague offence that carries a maximum three-year sentence and has increasingly been employed to silence clergy who refuse to place their congregations under Communist Party control, according to ChinaAid and The Epoch Times.
The crackdown began on October 9 in Beihai, Guangxi, where police launched a coordinated action across Shanghai, Zhejiang, Shandong, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan. Within days, nearly 30 pastors, ministers, and congregants were detained, including prominent pastor Mingri “Ezra” Jin, founder of Zion Church and one of China’s most visible unregistered Christian leaders.
The arrests drew swift criticism from the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, both calling on Beijing to release the detainees.
Under Chinese law, suspects cannot be held for more than 37 days without formal arrest. Rights groups say police rushed through formal arrest procedures to prevent international pressure from forcing their release
“A Chilling Milestone” in China’s War on Independent Churches
ChinaAid president Dr. Bob Fu called the development “a chilling milestone in the CCP’s all-out war on Christianity.”
“These pastors and co-workers are being treated as criminals simply because they faithfully shepherded a large, legally unregistered church that refused to submit to CCP control and surveillance,” Fu said. “Their only ‘crime’ is preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Christian Solidarity Worldwide echoed the condemnation, with CEO Scott Bower stating that the detainees were “targeted solely for the peaceful exercise of their religious beliefs.”
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