Police in China have carried out further arrests of members of a doomsday cult for spreading rumors about the imminent end of the world, BBC News reported citing Chinese state media.

Almost 1,000 members of Christian group Almighty God have now been detained.

State media terms Almighty God an "evil cult" - the same description it applies to the banned Falun Gong group.

The sect predicts Friday will usher in three days of darkness and has urged its members to overthrow communism. Its adherents believe December 21 is the last day in the Mayan long count calendar and thus signifies the end of the world. The belief has gained considerable popularity in China where the film 2012 was a box office hit.

To calm anxieties, police in Beijing have posted an online notice telling people that "the so-called end of the world is a rumor".

Almighty God has told its believers that the apocalypse will usher in a new era presided over by a "female Jesus", according to the Chinese newspaper Global Times.

The group has been attacked by Chinese media which variously accuses female members of using "sex communication" to ensnare single men, of banning followers from carrying mobile phones and of using pseudonyms to conceal their real identities.

Little is known about the group, which state media said was formed about 20 years ago in the central Henan province. Most of the arrests have been in the provinces of Qinghai and Guizhou, the Beijing Times said.