SWAT teams carry out mass arrests of Christians in China: report
More than 1,000 police, SWAT and paramilitary units carried out a crackdown on Christian churches across at least 12 congregations for days in Yayang Town, Zhejiang province, detaining hundreds, according to a watchdog report.
Residents say that officers from several districts in Zhejiang, including Hangzhou and Pingyang, were deployed to Yayang Town, with the first wave of detentions taking place before dawn on Monday, according to the U.S.-based advocacy organization ChinaAid, led by veteran rights activists Bob Fu.
Several hundred people were detained within the first two days, and at least four more were taken into custody by Dec. 17, residents said
SWAT forces sealed off roads around the church and barred Christians from entering. Items belonging to those targeted were confiscated, and police presence remained heavy throughout the area during the five-day operation.
Authorities issued no public statement during or after the arrests.
Multiple residents said information about the crackdown was swiftly removed from online platforms and communication was heavily restricted. On the night of Dec. 15, a fireworks display costing over 1 million yuan (about $142,000) was staged in the town square. There was no official celebration on the calendar, and residents said the timing was meant to distract from the raids.
The fireworks videos were widely circulated alongside posts from state-linked accounts repeating slogans such as “Listen to the Party, follow the Party," according to ChinaAid. When questioned, these accounts described the fireworks as a public celebration of a crackdown on crime. Users claiming to be locals wrote that the fireworks coincided with raids on Christian homes and churches, but their comments were deleted.
Two of the individuals named as primary targets were 58-year-old Lin Enzhao and 54-year-old Lin Enci. Both were described as key figures in the local church and were listed on wanted notices as leaders of a “criminal organization,” with a reward offered for information. The listed offense was “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a common charge used in political cases.
No further evidence has been released publicly.
Local residents said the men had long been involved in church affairs and were previously targeted for opposing the removal of crosses from church buildings. Officials reportedly labeled them “gang-related,” but church members viewed them as defenders of religious space.
Their resistance to the forced installation of national flags at churches was cited as one source of tension.
A previous incident in June reportedly involved the mayor of Yayang leading a group that dismantled church gates and walls to raise the Chinese national flag on the property. Church members said this encroached on religious space and violated their rights.
Under the national “Five Entries and Five Transformations” policy, religious institutions are required to display the Constitution, national laws and party slogans, and to adapt religious practice to political directives. In several areas, these requirements have led to confrontation between local churches and officials.
Since 2014, when Zhejiang province launched a campaign to remove crosses from churches, Christian groups in Yayang Town have pushed back against surveillance and demolition. In 2017, clashes broke out after local believers refused to allow the installation of cameras. Multiple injuries were reported.
Following the latest operation, a rally was held in Yayang on Dec. 18 titled “Elimination of Six Evils.” Police vehicles, SWAT units and riot officers were displayed in public to reinforce the anti-crime narrative. Residents claim officers stationed near Christian homes had asked them to accuse the detained leaders of wrongdoing.
Posters and statements framed the community as part of a cult or criminal group, ChinaAid noted.
The exact number of people formally detained across Yayang’s churches remains unknown. Initial counts suggest more than 20 individuals may have been charged.
In September, at least 70 Christians were arrested during a separate wave of raids targeting unregistered churches, with accusations ranging from fraud to illegal assembly, according to Open Doors, which monitors anti-Christian activity across the world.
Some of those arrested were accused of mishandling church funds, even though no complaints had been filed from within the church. A local contact told the organization that over 80 church groups stopped meeting due to the crackdown, leaving only a small number of congregations active.
