At least six missing since China launched Human Rights crackdown

At least six people remain missing or are believed to have disappeared into the custody of China's security services about two weeks after Beijing initiated one of its most comprehensive clampdowns on the country's civil society in decades.

According to the Hong Kong-based China Human Rights Lawyer Concern Group, at least 238 people have now been detained or questioned since the crackdown began, reported The Guardian.

Those missing include a trainee lawyer, a legal assistant and the leader of an underground Christian church.

Maya Wang, the China researcher for Human Rights Watch, said that nothing is known about what happened to them.

Most of the six are believed to be in detention where they face the risk of ill treatment and torture, Wang said, adding that others may have gone into hiding to escape arrest.

Beijing's offensive against human rights lawyers began on July 9 with the arrest of Wang Yu, an attorney known for defending politically sensitive clients, including five Chinese feminists detained earlier this year.