The government approved the nomination of Gen. Kim Yo-hwan as the country's new Army chief on Friday, an official said.

The decision reached at a Cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Chung Hong-won came a day after Kim was tapped to lead the Army, which is under mounting public fire over the beating death of a soldier.

Kim's formal appointment requires the approval of President Park Geun-hye.

Kim's predecessor quit earlier this week over the latest incident that illustrated a deep-rooted culture of bullying of junior enlisted soldiers by their seniors in barracks.

All able-bodied South Korean men must carry out compulsory military service for about two years in a country facing North Korea across the heavily fortified border. (Yonhap)