Nine senior People's Liberation Army officials, including the Central Military Commission's Vice-Chairman He Weidong, were expelled from the Communist Party of China for disciplinary violations and alleged serious duty-related crimes, a Chinese defense spokesman announced on Friday.

Zhang Xiaogang, spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense, made the announcement in a news release.

In addition to He, the other eight are Miao Hua, former head of CMC's Political Work Department; the department's former deputy head He Hongjun; Wang Xiubin, former deputy chief of the CMC joint operations command center; Lin Xiangyang, former commander of the PLA Eastern Theater Command; Qin Shutong, former political commissar of the PLA Ground Force; Yuan Huazhi, former political commissar of PLA Navy; Wang Houbin, former commander of PLA Rocket Force; and Wang Chunning, former commander of the People's Armed Police Force.

With approval from the CPC Central Committee and the CMC, the military's top anti-corruption watchdog CMC Discipline Inspection Commission conducted investigations on them successively, according to the release.

The probe found the nine people had committed serious violations of the Party disciplines and are suspected of severe duty-related crimes, involving huge amounts, with an "extremely serious nature and egregious impact," Zhang said.

In accordance with the Party regulations and national laws, the CPC Central Committee decided to expel the nine from the Party and transfer their suspected criminal matters to military procuratorial authorities for further review. The CMC had earlier decided to strip them of their military status.

The spokesman said that the handling of the cases has once again demonstrated the CPC Central Committee and the CMC's "firm resolve to carry the anti-corruption campaign through to the end."

He added that the people's armed forces are "cleaner, more consolidated, and possess stronger cohesion and combat capability."

jiangchenglong@chinadaily.com.cn