China Intensifies Crackdown on Christianity: 18 Zion Church Leaders Formally Arrested

Chinese authorities have formally arrested 18 leaders of the Beijing Zion Church in what represents one of the most significant crackdowns on underground Christian communities in recent years, according to Christian rights organization ChinaAid.

These church leaders have been in detention since early October, targeted as part of a comprehensive nationwide operation against unregistered churches, The Epoch Times reports.

ChinaAid President Bob Fu revealed that the detained individuals face charges of "illegally using information networks," an offense that could result in imprisonment for up to three years. Human rights organizations note that this particular charge is increasingly employed by Chinese authorities to suppress Christian leaders who refuse to operate under Communist Party oversight.

The enforcement action began on October 9 with police in Beihai, Guangxi, initiating a coordinated operation spanning multiple provinces against members of the Zion Church. Within a short period, authorities detained prominent pastor Mingri "Ezra" Jin along with approximately 30 pastors, ministers, and congregation members across various regions including China, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Shandong, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan. These arrests prompted condemnation from both the US State Department and the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.

Authorities also questioned the spouse of one detainee. According to Chinese legal provisions, suspects cannot be detained beyond 37 days without formal arrest. Earlier detainees were held at Beihai's No 1 and No 2 detention facilities, with four individuals subsequently released on bail. Fu described the formal arrests as "a chilling milestone" in the Communist Party's escalating efforts to eliminate independent Christian practice in China. He emphasized that their only transgression was sharing their faith and declining to transform the church into a Party-controlled institution.

Zion Church was established by Jin in 2007 following his conversion after the Tiananmen Square incident. The congregation expanded to include nearly 5,000 members across 50 cities throughout China. In 2018, authorities closed the church's physical location, forcing it to transition to online operations—an activity now restricted under new regulations prohibiting unauthorized religious teaching on the internet.