Kim Jong-un, son and successor of deceased dictator Kim Jong-il, far right, has ordered the purging of government officials who threaten his reign. Kim’s lastest victim was vice-minister of the army due to what some would call celebrating the life of the deceased. Kim Chol was executed by explosive so no trace would be left behind. Click below for more info.
A North Korean army minister was reportedly executed with a mortar round for drinking and carousing during the official mourning period after the death of Kim Jong-il.
Kim Chol, the vice-minister of the army, was taken into custody earlier this year on the orders of Kim Jong-un, who assumed the leadership after his father died in December. On the orders of Mr Kim to leave “no trace of him behind, down to his hair”, Kim Chol was forced to stand on a spot that had been zeroed in for a mortar round and was “obliterated”, South Korean media reported.
The execution is just one example of a purge of members of the North Korean military or party who threatened the fledgling regime of Mr Kim.
So far this year, 14 senior officials have fallen victim to the purges, according to intelligence data provided to Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the South Korean foreign affairs, trade and unification committee.
