During the escalating COVID-19 outbreak in mainland China, three senior Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leaders passed away within a span of 16 days from July 22 to August 6, 2026. The deceased included Lieutenant Generals Chen Xianfeng, Political Commissar of the North Sea Fleet, Lieutenant General Shi Baoyuan, Deputy Commander of the Shenyang Military Region, and Lieutenant General Li Yongjin, Deputy Commander of the Beijing Military Region. Additionally, Major General Chen Youyuan, former Deputy Director of the Military Training Department of the General Staff Headquarters, passed away on July 31, 2026.
According to reports from The Paper, Li Yongjin, a retired CCP member and former Deputy Commander of the Beijing Military Region as well as Commander of the Beijing Military Region Air Force, passed away in Beijing on August 6, 2026, at the age of 84, due to ineffective medical treatment.
Public records show that Li Yongjin, born in December 1941 in Qingdao, Shandong Province, joined the military in 1959 and held various positions such as pilot, squadron commander, regimental commander, and division commander. He served as Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force in 1990, Commander of the Air Force’s 8th Aviation Army, and Deputy Commander of the Beijing Military Region Air Force until 2004. He was promoted to Major General in September 1988 and to Lieutenant General in July 1999. Li also served as a delegate to the Eighth and Tenth National People’s Congress.
On August 5, 2026, Xinhua News Agency announced the passing of Shi Baoyuan, retired Deputy Commander of the Shenyang Military Region, in Beijing on July 25, 2026, at the age of 89 due to illness.
Shi Baoyuan, born in May 1937 in Tongxian, Hebei Province (now Tongzhou District, Beijing), joined the military in 1954 and the CCP in 1955. Throughout his career in the Shenyang Military Region, he held roles such as Tank Regiment Commander, Tank Division Commander, and Deputy Chief of Staff of the 190th Division of the 64th Army. Shi was promoted to Major General in 1988 and to Lieutenant General in 1993. He was a delegate to the Thirteenth National Congress of the CCP and a member of the Eighth and Ninth National People’s Congress.
Chen Xianfeng, former Political Commissar of the North Sea Fleet of the Chinese Navy, passed away in Qingdao on July 22, 2026, at the age of 85 due to illness, as reported by The Paper.
Public records indicate that Chen Xianfeng, born in 1940 in Lijin County, Dongying City, Shandong Province, joined the military in January 1959. He held various positions in the Navy, including Director of the Fujian Base Political Department of the East China Sea Fleet and Deputy Director of the Political Department of the East China Sea Fleet. Chen served as the Political Commissar of the North Sea Fleet from 1999 to 2003 and was promoted to Rear Admiral in 2000. He was elected as a delegate to four consecutive CCP Naval Party Congresses and was a member of the Tenth National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.
Chen Youyuan, a Major General and former Deputy Director of the Military Training Department of the General Staff Headquarters, passed away in Beijing on July 31, 2026, at the age of 82, as reported by The Paper.
Chen Youyuan, born in January 1944 in Kaizhou, Chongqing, joined the military in December 1964 and the CCP in September 1965. Throughout his career, he held various positions, including Secretary of the Artillery Political Department of the Military Commission, Secretary of the Office of the Chengdu Military Region Command, and Deputy Editor-in-Chief and Vice President of the Military Education Magazine of the General Staff Military Training Department. He was promoted to Major General in 1997.
Chen Youyuan also served as a member of the China Olympic Committee, Head of the Chinese Military Sports Delegation, and Executive Committee Member of the International Military Sports Council.
The official cause of death of these officials has not been disclosed. However, with the recent surge of COVID-19 infections in mainland China, the situation remains dire. According to the latest data from the CCP’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in the 31st week of 2026 (July 27 to August 2), the positivity rate for COVID-19 in respiratory samples from patients with flu-like symptoms at designated hospitals nationwide remained high, indicating a continuous increase in cases. The positivity rate for COVID-19 in severe acute respiratory infection cases also remained elevated. Given the CCP’s tendency to conceal the true extent of the epidemic, the actual situation may be far more severe than officially reported.
With the recent escalation of the outbreak, the alarming frequency of sudden deaths among CCP officials and personnel has raised concerns. In the past two months from June 2026, at least 13 middle-aged and young CCP officials and police officers have succumbed to illness, with at least 10 of them being CCP members. Additionally, at least seven CCP officials aged between 60 and 70 have also passed away.