By Kerry Mcdermott PUBLISHED: 06:44 EST, 16 July 2012 | UPDATED: 11:45 EST, 16 July 2012 North Korea's top military official - a key mentor to young new leader Kim Jong Un who served under his father - has been removed from all posts because of illness, state media said on Monday in a surprise announcement that shakes the core of the authoritarian country's power structure. Ri Yong Ho had looked healthy in recent appearances, and his departure fed speculation among analysts that Kim purged him in an effort to put his own mark on the nation he inherited seven months ago when his father Kim Jong Il died.
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Ri Yong Ho was a member of North Korea's late former leader Kim Jong Il's trusted inner circle
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Experts claim the surprise move is evidence of 'generational change' in the authoritarian country under its new young leader Kim Jong Un
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The army chief was relieved from his posts due to illness, according to state media reports
The dismissal comes as @placeholder makes waves in other ways.