More than 10 police officers reportedly broke into the Beihai, China, apartment of Ezra Jin Mingri, senior pastor of Zion Church, on Oct. 10. As they rifled through books and handcuffed Mr. Jin, 56, a police dragnet fell across the country, rounding up other leaders in the church’s network. The complex operation was the largest crackdown on unregistered religious activity since 2018.
The arrests reflect China’s growing use of advanced surveillance technology, a staple of the regime’s Public Security Bureau. The goal is to silence with fear and intimidation a Christian network that in recent years has launched about 100 small churches in 40 cities across China and reaches tens of thousands of people online. Its blend of digital outreach and open witness make it a political competitor in the eyes of the Communist Party. Those in custody are now housed in two detention centers in Beihai, reportedly facing interrogation in cramped cells.
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