It was like a scene from the Japanese invasion of China during World War II.
That was the impression left on the mind of a church member who witnessed the recent police destruction of their church, which was still undergoing construction in China’s central Henan province, and the torture and arrest of its parishioners that followed.
According to the unnamed witness, some 300 police officers and local government officials arrived on May 5 and began demolishing the Shuangmiao Christian Church under construction in Shangqiu, Henan, China Aid reported. The church was leveled to the ground, witnesses said.
During the demolition, officials beat dozens of parishioners, pushing them to the ground and twisting their hands before dragging and placing under arrest some 40 of them, including Shuangmiao Christian Church pastor Zhang Di and the church’s vice director, Lü Yuexia, according to China Aid.
