China expels top general, 8 others in anti-graft drive

China’s second-highest ranking general and eight other senior officials have been expelled from the ruling Communist Party and the military on suspicion of serious misconduct linked to corruption, China’s defence ministry said Friday.

He Weidong, who was the vice-chair of the powerful central military commission, is the most senior official targeted so far in an ongoing anti-graft drive against Chinese military leaders.

The nine officials are suspected of extremely serious crimes involving exceptionally large sums of money, defence ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said in a statement posted online. Their cases have been investigated and referred to military prosecutors for review and prosecution, Zhang said.

Govt anti-corruption drives have become a signature policy of Chinese leader Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012. Thousands of officials have been purged including high-profile political rivals. Weidong, who was elevated to the central military commission in 2022, has not been seen in public for months — often the first indication an official is in trouble. The announcement Friday was the confirmation of what had happened to him. The eight other dismissed officials include the director of the central military commission’s political work department, Miao Hua. The commission, chaired by Xi, is China’s top military body.