(Minghui.org) In September 2026, Minghui.org learned of 821 cases of Falun Gong practitioners being persecuted for their faith, including 11 deaths, 55 sentencing cases with terms ranging from 10 months to 7.5 years, 299 arrests, and 456 incidents of harassment.
Due to strict censorship in China, information collection and reporting is often delayed. Some of the newly reported cases took place in 2026, and the rest occurred in earlier years.
In particular, 66.5% of the total newly reported arrest and harassment cases came from Hebei Province alone, with 502 practitioners arrested or harassed in the province. The new wave of the persecution campaign came under the order of Wang Lujin, the secretary of the Hebei Province Political and Legal Affairs Committee, to target the practitioners under the pretext of “cracking down on organized crime and gangs.”
Below is a selection of persecution cases.
Deaths
Sichuan Man Incapacitated After Serving Four Years, Dies Three Years Later
Mr. Deng Weiyong was incontinent, suffered memory loss, and had an IQ of a toddler when he completed a four-year prison term on May 10, 2022. The Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, resident remained wheelchair-bound, incapacitated, and confused. He died three years later, on September 27, 2025. He was 57.
Mr. Deng Weiyong before the persecution.
Mr. Deng Weiyong after the persecution.
Since the Chinese Communist Party launched the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999, Mr. Deng was repeatedly targeted for upholding his faith. He was arrested multiple times, given two and a half years of forced labor in 2002, and sentenced to four years in 2019. He spent the last eight months of his term in three different hospitals after he lost consciousness during a torture session.
74-Year-Old Shaanxi Woman Dies in Prison Serving an 8-Year Term
Ms. Cao Ping, 74 and of Ankang City, Shaanxi Province, died in April 2026 while serving an eight-year term for her faith in Falun Gong. Her family noted a large area of bruising on her thigh and suspected that she had been tortured prior to her death, especially given what she said during their last phone call: she suddenly uttered, “It’s too cruel” before the guards cut her off.
The Shaanxi Province Women’s Prison dared Ms. Cao’s family to submit their questions in writing and barred them from picking up her body. The family eventually submitted to the intimidation and agreed not to pursue legal action against the prison. They then quickly had her cremated.
Ms. Cao, a retiree of a department store, was last arrested on September 25, 2022, and later sentenced to eight years. She was admitted to the Shaanxi Province Women’s Prison in April 2026 after losing her appeal.
Ms. Cao became blind in one eye and had blurred vision in the other following her last arrest. Her lawyer and family filed requests to have her released numerous times, but were turned down each and every time. She died in the prison in April 2026.
82-Year-Old Woman Dies One Year After Serving Over Seven Years
Ms. Hu Mitao, of Nanchang County, Jiangxi Province, suffered severe physical and mental damage while serving seven years and two months. She never recovered after being released from the Jiangxi Province Women’s Prison on June 16, 2025. She passed away on July 10, 2026. She was 82.
Ms. Hu’s last arrest was on April 16, 2018, while studying Falun Gong teachings with a few other practitioners. She was sentenced to prison by the Xihu District Court in October 2019.
Practitioners Sentenced to Prison
Mr. Zhang Junjia, a rideshare driver in Tieling City, Liaoning Province, was sentenced to one and a half years for telling a passenger how practicing Falun Gong completely turned his life around.
Mr. Zhang used to be addicted to gambling. He took out loans totaling over 300,000 yuan and lost it all. His parents had to borrow money to repay his debt. Stressed out by his situation, his father developed a heart condition and later suffered a stroke, which further exacerbated the family’s financial hardship.
To make matters worse, Mr. Zhang was involved in a car accident and paid over 30,000 yuan to repair the other person’s vehicle. Unable to cope with the pressure, he attempted suicide three times.
To pay off the debt, Mr. Zhang bought a car and became a rideshare driver. With a monthly car payment of 3,100 yuan, family debt, and his father’s medical expenses, he was under tremendous pressure.
Mr. Zhang later met a few local Falun Gong practitioners. Impressed by how calm and peaceful they were, he began reading Falun Gong books. He lives by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance, and became more considerate and forgiving.
For telling a passenger how he benefited from practicing Falun Gong, Mr. Zhang was arrested on September 23, 2025. He was later indicted by the Dadong District Procuratorate, and sentenced to prison by the Dadong District Court after two hearings in August 2026.
Six practitioners in Tangshan City, Hebei Province, aged 62 to 83, were given between one and a half and three and a half years on September 22, 2026. They were arrested on October 28, 2025, while talking to people about Falun Gong at a community fair.
They were indicted and convicted by the Zunhua City Procuratorate and Zunhua City Court, both of which have been designated to handle all Falun Gong cases in the greater Tangshan area.
Ms. Yan Hong, 63 and of Changsha County, Hunan Province, was sentenced to three years and two months by the Liuyang City Court after a hearing on June 5, 2026.
The prosecutor accused her of promoting Falun Gong at a certain location at a particular time. Her lawyer refuted the allegation by showing her train ticket reservation with her real name. She was on a train to her destination during the said time. There was no way she could be at the said location as alleged.
Ms. Yan also testified in her own defense and shared how Falun Gong turned her into a better and more capable person. The barber shop owner once served as the local community office director. She helped many residents resolve their conflicts and was well-regarded. Such a good person, however, was repeatedly targeted for her faith. She previously served two prison terms totaling 9.5 years (June 2001 – June 2007 & May 2014 – November 2017).
Ms. Yan is currently held at the Changsha City Fourth Detention Center. Due to abuse in detention, she developed high blood sugar and high blood pressure. Her family filed an appeal with the Changsha City Intermediate Court on her behalf.
Young Mother and Grandmother Both Sentenced to 15 Months
Ms. Su Li, a 32-year-old mother in Hebi City, Henan Province, was sentenced to 15 months and fined 2,000 yuan on August 25, 2026.
The mother of a four-year-old girl and a three-year-old boy, was arrested on May 22, 2025, one week after she was reported for distributing Falun Gong informational materials. While she was held at a brainwashing center, the authorities forced her husband to take their two young children to the center, and try to persuade her to renounce Falun Gong. Her mother was also summoned there to “work on her.”
Ms. Su was later released on bail. The police harassed her at home and photographed her almost every day. Every time she stepped out of her home, she was followed. Even her conversations with neighbors were reported to the police. The harassment left her on edge, and she was on the verge of a mental breakdown. She stayed at a psychiatric hospital for two months.
Ms. Su was arrested again on May 11, 2026. She appeared in the Shancheng District Court on August 25 and was convicted on August 31.
In Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, a 62-year-old grandmother of five was also sentenced to 15 months for practicing Falun Gong.
Ms. Xu Dongyu was arrested in either late October or early November 2025, together with her daughter-in-law and grandson at their shared residence. Her four granddaughters were in school during the arrest.
Ms. Xu was taken to a hotel for interrogation. After more than ten days, she was put in the Jiujiang City Detention Center. She experienced quick weight loss due to the physical abuse and mental distress.
With Ms. Xu in detention, her daughter-in-law had to quit her job to take care of her five children, whom Ms. Xu used to babysit.
Ms. Xu is set to be transferred to the Jiangxi Province Women’s Prison soon.
Incidents of Arrest and Harassment
New Persecution Campaign in Hebei Province
Since September 2026, following an order by the secretary of the Hebei Province Political and Legal Affairs Committee, police officers, neighborhood committees, and village committees at various cities, districts, and counties across the province have been monitoring, harassing, or arresting Falun Gong practitioners.
Many practitioners, especially those who started practicing Falun Gong before the Chinese Communist Party launched the persecution in 1999, were targeted. In most of the harassment episodes, the police took photos of the practitioners, and confiscated their Falun Gong books, informational materials, and other personal items.
In Yongqing County, Langfang City, three officers from the Houyi Police Station showed up at Ms. Wang Xiuhua’s home at around 9 p.m. on August 16. When they saw a wall decoration reading “Falun Dafa is good; Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” they attempted to rip it off. Ms. Wang’s husband stopped them.
One officer demanded to see Ms. Wang, and her husband said she was not feeling well. As they were talking, another officer sneaked into her bedroom and took pictures of her.
Having been persecuted for years for her faith, Ms. Wang was traumatized by the latest harassment episode. After the police left, her condition worsened, and her husband had to called in an ambulance that night. She died days later.
On September 1, officers from the Jianbei Police Station and staffers from the neighborhood committee harassed a practitioner in her 90s at her 24th-floor apartment unit in Shijiazhuang City. Her family stopped the police from taking pictures of her. The police threatened to return every month.
Mr. Shi Rui, of Cangzhou City, was at work when he received a call from the police at around 4 p.m. on September 9, ordering him to return to his rental home. He complied and saw agents from the Wangjiapu Township Police Station and the Jindao Police Station waiting outside. They raided his home and interrogated him at the Wangjiapu Township Police Station for about four hours before releasing him.
Shaanxi Woman in Critical Condition Due to Torture in Custody
Ms. Wei Haiyun, of Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province, is now in critical condition after being tortured in custody.
Ms. Wei was arrested in June 2026 and she held a hunger strike in protest. The police sent her home when she was on the verge of death. When she regained consciousness after being resuscitated, she said that the police had force-fed her before she passed out again. In early September 2026, she had difficulty breathing and received a tracheostomy. The doctor found that her lungs were seriously infected.
Ms. Wei’s family also noticed an open wound on one of her heels with exposed bone. They knew she had been tortured by the police.
Retired Teacher Faces Prosecution for Mailing a Letter about Falun Gong
Ms. Ma Shaoli, a 68-year-old retired teacher in Linyi City, Shandong Province, is facing prosecution for mailing a letter to police officers urging them to stop persecuting her faith, Falun Gong.
Ms. Ma was arrested at her home on May 8, 2026. The police produced a search warrant without a signature and raided her home. They said that after Ms. Ma was released from a 15-day detention from a previous arrest in 2024, she wrote a letter to the Yishui County Police Department, urging the officers not to participate in the persecution. Instead of addressing her concerns, the police arrested her again.
Ms. Ma is currently held at the Linyi City Detention Center. She has been indicted by the local procuratorate and now faces trial.
Ms. Ma’s parents-in-law are in their 90s and relied on her and her husband for care. Her father-in-law, in particular, struggles with stroke complications. Her arrest left her husband, in his 70s, in a dire situation.
Jiangxi Woman’s Pension Suspended; Frequently Harassed After Serving Wrongful Prison Term
Ms. Kuang Zhihua was devastated to learn that her pension had been suspended when she completed a 7.5-year prison term in March 2025. The Nanchang County, Jiangxi Province, resident also faced constant harassment from the police.
Ms. Kuang was arrested at home on September 13, 2017, for “raising awareness about the persecution of Falun Gong using the internet.” She was sentenced to seven and a half years on May 6, 2019, after nearly two years of detention. She was subjected to various torture methods while serving time at the Jiangxi Province Women’s Prison.
When Ms. Kuang was released on March 13, 2025, her pension had been suspended and another 90,000 yuan in pension payments was also withheld by the social security bureau. She frequented the social security bureau, demanding the authorities to reinstate her pension, but to no avail.
In addition to the financial persecution, Ms. Kuang also faced ongoing police harassment. They took photos or videos of her without her permission, and also ordered her to sign statements to renounce Falun Gong.
Related Reports:
Summary Report: Persecution of Falun Gong in China in July 2026
Summary Report: The Persecution of Falun Gong in China in August 2026
Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners Aged 60 and Above in the First Half of 2026
Copyright © 1999-2026 Minghui.org. All rights reserved.
