(CNN) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il was reappointed Thursday as chairman of the National Defense Commission, which oversees the country's military, according to the state-run news agency KCNA.
The election by the North Korean parliament was expected.
Kim's recent health problems have prompted analysts to look for signs of whether he is ready to groom one of his sons as an heir to the world's only communist dynasty.
But the secretive nation shields its internal affairs from international scrutiny.
All About North Korea • Kim Jong-il