Kim Jong Un has apparently made another major change to the military leadership, this time replacing Kim Jong Gak as the Minister of the People’s Armed Forces (who essentially acts as the North Korean Defense Minister) with Kim Kyok Sik after only seven months in office.

The apparent move, still unconfirmed by North Korean sources, comes amid reports that Kim Jong Un has conducted far-reaching “loyalty checks” on key party, government and military officials, after he labelled those without allegiance nothing more than a “stick" in a recent address to security officials.