| North Korea has named a career field army commander as its new military head, PyongyangÂ’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) indicated in a story filed late Saturday. Kim Kyok-Sik, who is believed to be 67, succeeded his predecessor Kim Yong-Chun as the chief of the general staff of the communist countryÂ’s 1.1-million-strong army, it said. Yong-Chun was appointed this month as the deputy of the National Defence Commission (NDC) following 12 years in the top military post. Chaired by leader Kim Jong-Il, the NDC is the most powerful organisation in North Korea. Kyok-SikÂ’s rise to the key post remained unknown until KCNA called him the head of the general staff in a report Saturday on Kim Jong-IlÂ’s inspection of two military units. |