North Korean Leader Sacks Top General, Says Prepare for War

North Korean despot Kim Jong Un dumped his top general and told the country to prepare for war, calling for more weapons production and military drills, state media said on Thursday.

The Korean People’s Army’s chief of general staff, Gen. Pak Su Il, was "dismissed," KCNA reported. Pak had served at the top of the military for about seven months.

Pak was replaced by Gen. Ri Yong Gil, a former defense minister.

At a meeting of the central military commission of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea on Wednesday, Kim “deeply summarized and analyzed the present situation of the Korean peninsula and its vicinity, and made an important conclusion on further stepping up the war preparations of the KPA in an offensive way," KCNA said. 

Ri had a previous tour as army chief of staff. Rumors flew that the general had been executed after he was sacked in 2016 and disappeared from public view, Reuters reported. He emerged a few months later, and was named to another senior post.

Last week Kim visited weapons factories and called for more production of missile engines and artillery. Photos released by KCNA showed Kim pointing on a map to Seoul and areas surrounding the South Korean capital.

North Korea has test fired more than 1000 missiles since 2022, the Associated Press reported. 

The U.S. has accused North Korea of supplying Russia with artillery shells, rockets and missiles for its war in Ukraine. Russia and North Korea deny those claims.