Recently, Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia of the Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party and others were officially reported to be “under investigation.” According to sources in Beijing, Zhang Youxia was taken away on the spot by relevant personnel before attending an internal meeting at the headquarters of the Central Military Commission in the Bayi Building. The security arrangements at the scene had been adjusted in advance, and Zhang himself did not resist. So far, there have been no official disclosures regarding the details.
A source in Beijing revealed to Dajiyuan that security measures had been put in place in advance at the scene. Zhang Youxia did not carry any weapons, and his security personnel did not enter the meeting venue. The source mentioned that Zhang Youxia’s security had been reorganized by relevant departments a few months ago, and on the day of the meeting, the sentries at the entrance of the conference demanded that his security personnel remain outside the gate. Although the security personnel were armed, they were not allowed to enter the venue.
Reports indicate that during the process of taking Zhang Youxia away, there was a brief physical altercation between the personnel and his security guards, but Zhang himself did not resist and was swiftly removed from the scene. The aforementioned information has not been confirmed by official Chinese Communist Party sources.
Public reports show that Zhang Youxia’s most recent public appearance was at the fifth plenary session of the Central Discipline Inspection Commission of the Chinese Communist Party on January 12, where both Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia and Commission Member Liu Zhenli were present. Since then, both individuals have not been mentioned in official reports. Six days later, Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli were arrested.
Informants also mentioned that authorities had been conducting a secret investigation into Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli for several months. They stated that when the decision was made at the level of the Political Bureau Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party to arrest the two individuals, it was determined that their actions touched upon serious political issues and were internally classified as “deviating from the party line and engaging in activities to split the party.”
Several Beijing residents informed reporters that after the authorities announced the decision to handle Zhang Youxia, there was a noticeable increase in the security level in downtown Beijing and major entry and exit routes. Some residents mentioned enhanced vigilance along the Chang’an Street from Beijing Railway Station to Xidan, with police checking identification cards on the streets and inside the subway.
A Beijing resident, Ms. Shi, told reporters that the security atmosphere in Beijing has tightened recently. She said, “When I walked from Dongdan to Beijing Railway Station on Sunday, it was basically three steps and one post, five steps and one sentry. There were fewer pedestrians and traffic compared to usual, and the overall feeling was more tense.”
Ms. Shi also noted that some top Chinese Communist Party leaders have not made public appearances recently. She mentioned, “What they are up to, the outside world really can’t figure out.”
Another resident informed reporters that in some sections of the road leading to Changping in Beijing, armed soldiers were stationed. While these changes had raised concerns among some residents, there had been no significant traffic control or blockades.
On January 26, many netizens on social media platforms reported that on Sunday (25th) and Monday morning (26th), some communities conducted centralized inspections on rented populations, and there were instances of police checking IDs inside the subway and patrol dogs in station halls. The posters later indicated that the traffic order was basically normal on those days and did not significantly affect commuting times, but there were also comments about the increased density of security personnel in the subway and residential areas these past two days.
At the official level of information dissemination, the handling of the situation also drew external attention. Beijing scholar Mr. Chen told reporters that on the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Discipline Inspection Commission’s official website, CCTV’s “Xinwen Lianbo” (News Broadcast) and People’s Daily official channels, the presentation of the investigation into Zhang Youxia appeared relatively low-key. He mentioned that CCTV news broadcasted Zhang Youxia’s related content once during the midday slot, but it was not mentioned again in the evening’s “Xinwen Lianbo”; People’s Daily published the related report on the fourth page and made some adjustments to public pages.
Mr. Chen further stated that Zhang Youxia’s name still appeared on the list of Political Bureau members on the Chinese Communist Party’s official website, and the names of Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli were still visible in the list of Central Military Commission members. He remarked, “With the investigation already announced, this situation is quite uncommon and raises more questions for outsiders on how the Chinese Communist Party is handling the Zhang and Liu incidents.”
Following up on Mr. Chen’s comments, reporters verified his claims on the Chinese Communist Party’s official website. Mr. Chen also mentioned that many individuals he had contact with within the system, including senior officials, were unable to provide a clear and consistent judgment. He said, “Everyone is uncertain. The internal situation is very complex.” He believed that the current highly confusing information might reflect that the top leadership was still in a phase of power adjustment that had not been fully clarified.
An individual close to the military analyzed from the perspective of the military’s internal structure, that the recent unexpected high-level personnel changes in Beijing’s military leadership was intriguing and indicated that the Chinese Communist Party regime was at a critical transition period. He stated, “This is not a positive transition, not towards a more enlightened direction, but a clear regression. This round of purification actions targeting the military is likely to unfold rapidly.”
The individual pointed out that Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli had served in the military for a long time and held high positions, their personnel impacts were not limited to a few high-level positions but extended downward through long-term promotion and recommendation mechanisms across multiple levels. He said, “This is not just changing a few people; it could trigger a complete chain reaction of personnel changes. Officers at the battalion level and above may all be replaced.”
He believed that in such a scenario, the concentrated handling of high-level military commission personnel would inevitably have a continuous impact on mid-to-high-ranking military officials within the military. He mentioned, “Many people may not directly work with them, but their career paths are intertwined. Once there is a change in classification, those below will also be affected, at least in terms of their future evaluations.”
The individual expressed that this top-down personnel uncertainty might lead to further tightening of discipline and obedience requirements within the military in the short term, but the long-term effects were difficult to assess. He said, “It’s more about keeping things under control now, but whether they can truly straighten things out, nobody is sure.”