NORTH KOREA, July 22 ----- The young man who took the helm of North Korea following his father's death last December has been formally declared the country's top military leader. North Koreans had been alerted an hour in advance to tune in at noon for important news. The previous time there had been such an announcement was on December 19 last year to announce the death of leader Kim Jong Il.

So anticipation was high, not only in North Korea, when the announcer opened the noon newscast. The 45-second announcement was followed by state radio playing the song “We will defend General Kim Jong Un at the Risk of Our Lives.” Kim is believed to be 29 years of age. The promotion for Kim, previously named a four-star general and who already holds almost all top military and party positions, comes just days after army chief Ri Yong Ho was removed from all of his posts supposedly due to “illness.”

An obscure general, Hyun Yong Chol, was named Tuesday to replace Ri as vice marshal. Kim came to power seven months ago following the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, who was the son of North Korea's late founder Kim Il Sung. Kim Jong Il, who was also a marshal, was promoted in February, two months after his death, to generalissimo. The changes are seen by analysts as an attempt to cement the hold on power by the third generation of the Kim family. But some analysts say the events of the last several days indicate conflict between the ruling family and the military - or even within the military, which has more than one million active personnel, making it the world's fourth largest army.

Source: voanews.com