China Suspends Social Media Accounts of COVID-19 Policy Critics

A man (R) browses his smartphone on a bench as an elderly patient is wheeled to an emergency hall in a hospital in Beijing on Jan. 7, 2023. Andy Wong/AP Photo

BEIJING—China has suspended or closed the social media accounts of more than 1,000 critics of the regime’s policies on the COVID-19 outbreak, as the country moves to roll back harsh anti-virus restrictions.

The popular Sina Weibo social media platform said it had addressed 12,854 violations including attacks on experts, scholars, and medical workers and issued temporary or permanent bans on 1,120 accounts.