Assassinations Targeting CCP Officials Highlight Rising Tensions in China, Experts Say

Experts say these cases could be rooted in a combination of widespread discontent, economic hardship, and political repression.

Paramilitary police officers patrol Tiananmen Square outside the Forbidden City, which was the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty, in Beijing on May 18, 2011. Feng Li/Getty Images

News Analysis

A wave of targeted killings against provincial and municipal officials has gripped China, with at least six prominent cases occurring in the past three months. These incidents have drawn attention to the growing social unrest and frustrations among the Chinese public amid economic hardship and political repression, China observers say.