Chinese commentator Hu Xijin is returning to social media after more than 3 months of silence

Hu Xijin, the former editor-in-chief of the state-run Global Times newspaper, has returned to Chinese social media after more than three months of silence.

Hu reappeared on the microblogging platform Weibo with a post on Thursday evening in which he expressed his personal admiration for the new bridge over the Chaobai River, which connects the outskirts of Beijing with neighboring Hebei province.

“I am very happy and want to open my arms to hug him,” he wrote, adding that he and many other Beijingers bought homes on the Hebei side because of accessibility and the bridge would ease their commutes to the capital. .

It was Hu’s first social media post in more than three months after he disappeared in the public eye in late July after his article interpreting the key was removed Communist Party economic strategy document.

So far, there has been no official explanation as to why his social media activity has stopped, and many are questioning whether he has faced backlash for expressing his views.

Hu, who left his position at the Global Times in 2021, has nearly 25 million followers on Weibo. Known as “Old Hu”, he did not shy away from controversial opinions and was outstanding defender Beijing politicians.