North Korea military head Ri Yong-ho 'removed from post'

North Korean military chief Ri Yong-ho has been removed from all official posts, according to state media.

As well as being head of the army, he was vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission and held top posts in the ruling Workers' Party.

In a short statement, the party said Mr Ri had been removed from his posts "because of illness".

The BBC's Seoul correspondent Lucy Williamson says there is widespread scepticism about that explanation.

The decision to relieve Mr Ri of his duties came at a meeting of the Workers' Party Central Committee politburo on Sunday, state-run news agency KCNA said.

The brief report made no mention of a successor.

Ri Yong-ho's removal from office has taken many people outside North Korea by surprise.

He was seen as having a key role in the recent transition of power in North Korea, from Kim Jong-il to his son, Kim Jong-un.

Few people here are taking the regime's explanation of "illness" at face value.

The statement posted on North Korea's state news agency was short and sparse, giving no details of his condition or any indication of his successor as head of the army.

Instead, some analysts are reading his removal as a possible political purge - in order to cement Kim Jong-un's grip on the military, or perhaps signalling a rift in the team of senior figures which has encircled the young heir during his six months in power.

Mr Ri was made army chief three years ago under Kim Jong-il, the current leader's father who died in December 2011 after ruling North Korea for almost two decades.

The army chief regularly appeared at state occasions beside Kim Jong-il.

He was also one of seven top officials to accompany the younger Kim as he followed the hearse containing his father's body at his state funeral.

Mr Ri was widely thought to be a figure in the inner circle of the new leader and instrumental in helping him cement his position.

His removal is now being scrutinised by analysts for signs about which direction Kim Jong-un, seen as young and inexperienced, will take the country.

Our correspondent says control of North Korea's military is seen as key to retaining power in the closed state.

In April North Korea defied international warnings to launch a rocket - an action its neighbours called a long-range missile test that contravened UN resolutions.

South Korea also warned earlier this year that Pyongyang appeared to be in the late stages of preparing for a third nuclear test - a claim North Korea has denied.

International talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear ambitions have been stalled since 2009.