Seoul, Aug 31 (IANS): North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the execution of Vice Premier Kim Yong-jin for being an "anti-revolutionary element", South Korea's Unification Ministry said on Wednesday.

The 63-year-old politician was allegedly executed by a firing squad in July, a ministry source told EFE news.

Yong-jin had reportedly displayed a negative attitude during an important parliamentary meeting at the end of July, after which his execution was ordered, according to the official.

The source said the information reached Seoul's unification ministry through various channels although it is impossible to confirm the news owing to the extreme opacity of the regime.

According to Seoul, other two important North Korean politicians -- 71-year-old Kim Yong-chol, Director of the United Front Department (UFD), the North Korean organisation responsible for relations with neighbouring South Korea, and Choi Hwi, First Deputy Director of the Central Committee of the Korean Workers' Party -- were also sent to re-education camps in recent months.