Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho has been relieved from top military post of North Korea due to his illness.
Pyongyang: Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho, the top military official of North Korea has been relieved from his posts. The surprise move is to eliminate a key figure in the ascendance of the country's young and untested leader, Kim Jong Un.
Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho, 69, came into light after becoming a mentor to Kim, the country's supreme commander, and an integral part of the leadership's inner circle after the death of dictator Kim Jong Il last year. Ri accompanied the younger Kim as they walked alongside a hearse carrying the body of Kim Jong Il at his funeral.
North Korea's official news agency said Ri was removed because of illness. The decision was made on Sunday after a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Worker's Party.