Seoul - South Korean government dismissed on Thursday rumours of the death of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Il as untrue, as speculation swept across Asia.

"We understand this rumor is untrue," Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-Nyoun said. "We have heard nothing officially from the North to support the rumor."

Despite reports by the North's state media that Kim is on a regular military tour, rumours about his death have spread.

Quoting an intelligence source, NewsHakuk. com, a local internet news service, said late Wednesday that Kim's car was found with his blood after he had been assassinated Monday.

After the government denied the report, the news site removed the news without any comment. Rumors about the seclusive regime is a fact of life. Most of the rumours on Kim, 66, are about his ailing health and which of his three sons may succeed him.

"Apparently, the channel for inter-Korean dialogue has been weakening, making it hard for the South to cope swiftly with the rumour," said Kim Yong-Hyun, professor at Dongguk University. (dpa)