A farmer in China who resisted the seizure of his land has been killed, the Christian human rights organisation China Aid has reported.

The farmer stood in front of a front-loader vehicle to try and stop contractors building a road across his land.

The vehicle was then driven into and over the famer, who lost his life, according to China Aid.

Social media posts that have since been deleted described how the man’s property was seized and a team of builders sent to construct a road over it.

“Officially, the state claims the death was caused by a faulty operation of machine and says it is investigating the situation, but internet users allege that it was intentional,” said China Aid. “Most social media posts related to the incident have been deleted, leaving little information on the event.”