Headline:US Demands China Release 30 Detained Christian Leaders in Major Crackdown on Underground Churches

The United States has demanded the immediate release of 30 leaders of one of China’s largest underground Christian church networks, detained during coordinated overnight raids across multiple cities.

Among those arrested was Pastor Jin Mingri, founder of Beijing’s influential Zion Church, which once drew thousands of worshippers before authorities shut it down in 2018. The detentions, first reported by the US-based human rights group ChinaAid, have been described as the “most extensive and coordinated wave of persecution” against Christians in more than four decades.

China’s ruling Communist Party officially promotes atheism and only allows worship within state-sanctioned churches led by government-approved clergy. Independent congregations, often called house churches, operate illegally and are frequently accused of defying national security laws.

It remains unclear whether the detained pastors and leaders have been formally charged.

“Such systematic persecution is not only an affront to the Church of God but also a public challenge to the international community,” Zion Church said in a statement following the arrests.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the move, calling it “further proof of the CCP’s hostility towards Christians who reject Party control of their faith.” Former Vice President Mike Pence and ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also joined the outcry, urging Beijing to release the detained leaders immediately.

At a press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said he was unaware of the case, but insisted that Beijing “governs religious affairs according to the law” and opposes any US interference.

The crackdown comes as US-China tensions escalate over trade disputes, tariffs, and high-level diplomatic engagements. It has also cast doubt over a planned summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, expected to take place later this month in South Korea.

Under President Xi, Beijing has tightened its grip on religious expression — especially targeting Christians and Muslims. During a 2016 national religious conference, Xi urged that religion must “serve the interests of the Chinese nation.”

Founded in 2007 with just 20 members, Zion Church grew into a vast underground network with more than 10,000 followers across 40 Chinese cities. It was banned in 2018 after refusing to install state surveillance cameras, prompting brief detentions of Pastor Jin and his team. His family later relocated to the US, while Jin remained in China to lead his congregation and has since been barred from leaving the country.

Despite government pressure, Zion Church continued to hold secret gatherings and stream online sermons until this latest crackdown.

In a letter shared by ChinaAid, Jin’s wife Liu Chunli said her heart was “filled with shock, grief, sorrow, worry, and righteous anger.” She described her husband as a man of unwavering faith who “did only what any faithful pastor would do.”

US-based Zion pastor Sean Long revealed that Jin had been mentally prepared for such a moment. “When I asked what would happen if he and all the leaders were detained,” Long recalled, “he smiled and said, ‘Hallelujah! For a new wave of revival will follow then.’”