China launches investigation into former internal security chief Zhou Yongkang

The Chinese party has begun a formal investigation into a former chief of internal security, Zhou Yongkang, after months of slowly tightening the noose through the investigation of his close associates.

Bloomberg reports Zhou, a former member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, is the highest-ranking official to be targeted by the state in a purge for 60 years.

The Politburo Standing Committee is a seven-member body where each member is responsible for an important aspect of the national interest, such as the economy, or national security.

Xinhua News, the official news agency of the Chinese government has said that Zhou is under investigation for a, "serious discipline violation." The Xinhua statement did not elaborate on what that violation may be.

Zhou's charges are most likely related to corruption, as the new President Xi Jinping has been using corruption charges to consolidate his control over the government.

The decision to finally investigate Zhou comes after a number of his allies have been stripped of their positions in government based on corruption charges.

The Economist notes that in late June a high-ranking general was stripped of his rank and arrested. Six other former government officials of high rank were also kicked out of the Communist Party. Tellingly, the general and former officials were allies of Zhou.

While corruption is a major drag on the economy and source of discontent among the Chinese people, it remains to be seen if Xi truly wants to inaugurate a new era of corruption free officials. As corruption is rife throughout the party system, it is more likely that corruption is just being used as an excuse to purge Xi's rivals.

At the same time, Bloomberg notes that the party has promised to go after both "tigers and flies," when it comes to corruption.