Record number of purges as Xi emphasises 'party discipline' at China political gathering

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, This is the first time in Xi's 14 years of leadership that plenum attendance fell below 300ByKelly Ng and Ian Tang, BBC MonitoringA record 33 members have been expelled from China's Communist Party as it concluded a major annual political gathering, which had the most empty seats ever seen.The fifth plenum was attended by 279 Central Committee members, compared to 315 at the fourth plenum in October 2025 and 364 at the third one in July 2024.While recent plenums focused on economic reforms or social and development issues, party discipline took centre stage at this week's gathering.Xi Jinping has made the fight against corruption a central pillar of his rule since he took the reins in 2012, calling it the "biggest threat" to the party.Anti-corruption purges continueSixteen of the 33 members expelled are from the military, according to a communique issued on Thursday, which marked the end of the four-day closed-door gathering held at a hotel in Beijing.It's unclear what specific charges these members face beyond "serious disciplinary and legal violations". Such broad allegations have become routine under Xi's anti-corruption campaign. It has ...