Former Chinese Politburo member Ma Xingrui charged with taking bribes

BEIJING (AP) — A former member of one of China’s top decision-making bodies has been formally charged with accepting bribes, state media reported Thursday, a week after Communist Party leaders confirmed his expulsion from the party.Prosecutors in Yichang, a city in the central province of Hubei, accused Ma Xingrui of using his leadership positions to accept “exceptionally large” bribes and to secure benefits for others, Xinhua state news agency said.Ma had been named to the Politburo in 2022 and his downfall became public in April, when authorities said he was being investigated for severe violations of party discipline and national laws, without providing details.He was the latest senior official to fall in Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s long-running anti-corruption campaign, a policy reinforced at last week’s closed-door meeting of the Central Committee’s fifth plenum, where the leaders adopted a resolution on strengthening discipline and combating corruption.The leaders also ratified t