What happened to Hu Jintao

Former Chinese President Hu Jintao was unexpectedly escorted out of the ruling Communist Party’s closing ceremony on October 22, 2022.

As the assistants escorted Hu Jintao out, he appeared confused and slightly disoriented. He appeared to be reluctant to leave, returning to his seat at one point. On his way out, he spoke with Mr Xi and patted Premier Li Keqiang on the back.

Chinese state media has claimed that Mr Hu was “not feeling well” and was accompanied out of the session to “rest”, adding that he feels “much better”.

Xinhuanet reporter Liu Jiawen claimed that Mr Hu “insisted” on attending the closing session despite taking the time recently to “recuperate”.

Xinhuanet reporter Liu Jiawen has learned that Hu Jintao insisted on attending the closing session of the Party's 20th National Congress, despite the fact that he has been taking time to recuperate recently.

— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) October 22, 2022

However, A more interesting interpretation is that Xi Jinping staged the incident to publicly humiliate his predecessor.

Having Hu literally dragged away from him could be a way for Xi to signal his dominance and send a message to other elites and the general public.