Beijing: The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has expelled 33 of the 34 Central Committee members whose disciplinary cases were reviewed during the Fifth Plenum, intensifying concerns over the continuing purge of senior officials under Chinese leader Xi Jinping, according to a report by The Epoch Times (TET).
The report said several high-ranking officials from China's military-industrial sector, who had been absent from public view for extended periods, were among those expelled. They include Yuan Jie, former chairman of the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, and Wen Gang, former chairman of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation. Both were alternate members of the Central Committee and had been removed from their respective positions in 2023 and 2024.
The list also includes Yu Jianfeng, former chairman of the China National Nuclear Corporation, who reportedly disappeared from public view after official activities during the 2025 Chinese New Year. Lei Fanpei, executive deputy director of the Office of the Central Commission for Integrated Military and Civilian Development, and Jin Zhuanglong, former Party Secretary of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, were also expelled.
Zhang Zhongyang, former general manager of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and an alternate Central Committee member, was among the officials named in the disciplinary action.
According to TET, the Fifth Plenum communiqué stated that the session had adopted a decision concerning the continued promotion of comprehensive and rigorous Party governance.
Su Tzu-yun, researcher and director of the Division of Defense Strategy and Resources at Taiwan's Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told TET that the purge was likely to continue because senior officials had their own networks and political connections. He said the removal of these officials would continue until their associated networks were eliminated.
The report also highlighted vacancies in China's top political and military leadership. Although 10 officials were elevated to full membership of the Central Committee, five others, including Fu Wenhua, a former commander of the Beijing Garrison and former subordinate of purged Central Military Commission (CMC) vice-chairman Zhang Youxia, were bypassed for promotion.
The seven-member CMC currently has only two active members, Xi Jinping and Zhang Shengmin, with no new members appointed to replace those removed. Su suggested that the vacancies could remain until the 21st National Congress next year, potentially consolidating Xi's control over the military while leaving the commission functionally weakened.
The Politburo, which normally comprises 25 members, also remains incomplete, with 22 members following Zhang Shengmin's addition.
US-based China analyst Chen Pokong told TET that the continued vacancies reflected Xi's insecurity and unresolved power struggles within the party's upper leadership. He also pointed to the removal of officials associated with Xi's inner circle, including Zhong Shaojun and Fang Yongxiang, describing it as an indication of weakening control over the military.
Chen further argued that Xi was using anti-corruption measures as a pretext to conceal internal power struggles and governance failures. He warned that the continued removal of senior officials reflected growing instability within the CCP, suggesting that the political situation could become increasingly precarious.