North Korea defence chief 'executed'

North Korea has executed its defence chief on treason charges, Seoul's National Intelligence Service (NIS) has told South Korean politicians.

The execution appears to be the latest of a series of high-level purges since Kim Jong-un took power after his father's death in 2011.

South Korean MPs were told Hyon was killed on 30 April by anti-aircraft fire in front of an audience of hundreds.

Reportedly, Hyon had fallen asleep during an event attended by Kim Jong-un and had not carried out instructions.

Reports from North Korea are impossible to independently confirm.

The execution comes after South Korea's spy agency said late last month that Kim had ordered the execution of 15 senior officials this year as punishment for challenging his authority.

In 2013, Kim purged and executed his uncle, Jang Song-thaek, once considered the second most powerful man in Pyongyang's leadership circle, for corruption and committing crimes damaging to the economy, along with a group of officials close to him.

Pyongyang's military leadership has been in a state of perpetual reshuffle since Kim took power.

Hyon, a little-known general, was promoted to the rank of vice marshal of the North Korean army in 2012.

The South Korean spy agency told politicians that Ma Won-chun, known as North Korea's chief architect of new infrastructure under Kim, was also purged, local media reported.