SHANGHAI, China (AP) - The whereabouts of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il remained unclear Thursday, with a Hong Kong-based television network speculating he may be headed for the south Chinese city of Guangzhou, while other reports put him in Beijing or Russia.Phoenix Television reported that three major hotels in Guangzhou known to be used for VIP visitors were largely empty and requiring guests to check out by tomorrow. A sales department employee at Guangzhou's famed White Swan hotel confirmed that they were expecting a ``a very important visitor'' beginning on Friday. She would not give her name, since she was not authorized to speak publicly. ``From January 12th-15th, we won't accept any new bookings. Some guests may have to move,'' said the hotel's assistant general manager, Janet Xie, without giving a reason.
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Local officials said they were in the dark. ``I've never heard of this,'' said Shi Lishi, a spokesman for the Guangzhou city government.
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On Wednesday, officials in Shanghai also disavowed any information about Kim's whereabouts. ``I have not received any information whatsoever about this,'' Jiao Yang, the city government spokeswoman, said at a regularly scheduled news conference.
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