Seven foreign Christians, detained on 10 February in Henan province, have been released. However the three Chinese Christians, arrested at the same time, remain in detention. Zhang Yongliang, a protestant preacher from Fangcheng city, Henan province, has been previously detained for his peaceful religious activities. It is thought that they may be prisoners of conscience. One of the seven foreign nationals has said that the Chinese may have been tortured or ill-treated at the time of their arrest. Another reported that he had been beaten by police. The seven have also said that they were detained in unheated rooms and suffered sleep deprivation due to intensive interrogation. They were denied permission to telephone their embassies or families.
