A well-known Christian lawyer has been arrested in China, in the same region where the Chinese government has been tearing down crosses.
Attorney Zhang Kai provided legal counsel for churches resisting a government order to remove their crosses.
Authorities in the eastern province of Zhejiang are under a deadline to remove crosses from church roofs.
More than a thousand crosses have already been torn down, and more than 200 human rights lawyers and advocates have been arrested in recent months.
Bob Fu, president of China Aid, a group that monitors Christian persecution in China, said it's all happening because communist leaders are afraid they're losing control of the region.
"It reflects the top political leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, especially even President Xi Jinping. They are increasingly nervous about the political and economic instability and insecurity," Fu said.
Local Christians say at least 11 pastors and church members have also been taken away by police this week.
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![Children play with a chalkboard sign as Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, right, speaks with a parent after an event about proposed legislation dubbed the "Parents Bill of Rights," March 1, 2023, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://www1.cbn.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_xl_640x480/public/parentsbillofrightsap.jpg?itok=IerXnWfz "Children play with a chalkboard sign as Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, right, speaks with a parent after an event about proposed legislation dubbed the "Parents Bill of Rights," March 1, 2023, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)")