【Babygirl (2024)】

China is Babygirl (2024)keeping a closer eye on churches in the country.

Officials in the Zhejiang province have started to install surveillance cameras in churches there, for "anti-terrorism and security purposes."

SEE ALSO: Pope on Ukraine: It's a 'scandal' that Christians are fighting each other

The new ruling quickly sparked friction between Christians and the communist government, with one Christian claiming that pastors and worshippers who "didn't agree to the move were dragged away," the South China Morning Postreported.

"Government officials came to the churches and put up cameras by force," the witness based in Wenzhou said.

According to China Aid, a Christian activist group, officials destroyed parts of the building, including the church's gate, in order to get in.

"A number of churches were destroyed in Wenzhou during the forced installation of surveillance cameras. Ironic that they were installing it for security reasons!" said one netizen on Weibo.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Zhejiang's Wenzhou city has one of the highest Christian populations in China, at nearly a million.

Mashable Trend Report Decode what’s viral, what’s next, and what it all means. Sign up for Mashable’s weekly Trend Report newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Ningbo, also in Zhejiang province, similarly has a large population of Christians that were affected by the ruling.

However, religious authorities say that the requirement does not "single out churches" but covers all public places.

"The requirement covers all public places in Ningbo, and does not single out churches," Jin Ke, deputy director of Ningbo's ethnic and religious affairs bureau told state media outlet the Global Times.

Officials added that surveillance systems had also been installed across schools and hospitals.

The ruling to equip public areas in China with video surveillance was first issued in 2015, but officials have refused to explain why the installation was only carried out some two years later.

NINGBO, CHINA - MAY 10: (CHINA OUT) Chinese Catholic worshippers pray during an early morning mass at a Catholic Church on May 10, 2006 in Ningbo of Zhejiang Province, China. China's official Catholic church named a new bishop on May 7, reportedly with papal approval, as Beijing rejected Vatican criticism of the unauthorized ordination of two other bishops. The Rev. Paolo Pei Junmin was named assistant bishop of Shenyang, the biggest city in China's northeast, said Liu Bainian, deputy chairman of the official church, the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, which has no ties to Rome, according to reports. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images) Credit: Getty Images

This is not the first time Chinese officials have come up against Zhejiang's Christian community.

Authorities had in 2014 ordered the removal of crosses on top of its church buildings, calling them "illegal structures."

The campaign, which saw some 360 crosses removed and one church demolished, had sparked international outrage.

There are an estimated 60 million Christians in China.

---

Featured Video For You

---

Should Religion Be a Part of Politics?

---

• Shopping
• Life
• Games
• Entertainment
• Tech
• Social Good
• Digital Culture
• Deals

• NYT Strands hints, answers for May 1
• Apple iOS 18.4 emojis: See every new emoji
• Nintendo brings Gamechat live chatting to the Switch 2
• Best smartwatch deal: Get the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra for 42% off at Amazon
• President Trump says semiconductor tariffs are next
• Best Sony deal: Save $207 on the SRS
• Kids Kindle deal: 22% off at Amazon after the Big Spring Sale
• 9 Trump tariff reactions that sum up this historic moment
• Best IPL deal: Save $80 on Braun IPL Silk·Expert
• ChatGPT image generation: 4 wild ways it's being used

• App Store does down, joins the rest of the internet
• Loving Dan Brown's books doesn't make me stupid
• We're sorry, but someone baked a cake with ketchup in it
• Netflix tweeted an answer to the question on every 'Dogs' fan's mind
• Resourceful beauty blogger employs fluffy cat for staging assistance
• Frank Ocean's 'Blonde' has already been illegally downloaded 750,000 times
• People are freaking out over this iPhone cursor trick
• Best gifts for people obsessed with true crime
• Texas schools will now teach real Civil War facts and Twitter is shook
• Teen girl in South Sudan auctioned off for marriage on Facebook

• Skywatching is lit in May, says NASA
• JBL Deals: Save up to 33% on JBL headphones, speakers, and sound bars
• The Beatles biopic casts all the internet's boyfriends in one movie
• Nintendo Switch 2 Direct April 2 livestream: See it live
• Amazon Book Sale: Shop early deals now
• MacOS Sequoia 15.4 is available. 3 new features to know about
• Best Apple deal: Save $100 on the iPad Mini
• The iRobot Roomba j9+ is 44% off at Amazon
• 'Thunderbolts*' mid
• Zelle shut down its app — here's how to keep using the payment service

• Best speaker deal: Save $30 on the JBL Clip 5
• JBL Deals: Save up to 33% on JBL headphones, speakers, and sound bars
• Best smartwatch deal: Get the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra for 42% off at Amazon
• Today's Hurdle hints and answers for April 3, 2025
• Keeping Hope Alive
• Best smartphone deal: Get the Google Pixel 9 Pro for $334.95 off at Target
• Sony PULSE Elite PS5 headset open
• 28 of the best mystery movies on Netflix
• Meta continues its submission to Trump with new advisor on its board
• Best Bose headphones deal: Save $100 on the QuietComfort Ultra