People's Liberation Army (PLA) Daily published an editorial on the Zhang Youxia case on January 31, 2026, at approximately 2:00 AM UTC, six days after the case was first reported, during which Zhang's name did not appear in state media, according to analyst Henry Gao on X. The editorial marks the first official mention of Zhang Youxia in PLA Daily following the initial reports on January 25, 2026, with Gao noting the six-day delay as striking since no references to Zhang appeared in the interim period. No additional details on the editorial's content or the nature of the Zhang Youxia case were provided in the X post by Gao, who described the publication as not surprising in itself but notable for its timing.
