North Korean leader Kim Jong-il will likely leave China Thursday to return home.

Armed guards have tightened security around Beijing Station and along railroads leading out of the Chinese capital since 3 p.m. Thursday.

A source in China's border city of Dandong said that a hotel, near the cross-border railway over the Yalu River, has been told to evict all its guests by 6 p.m. Thursday and keep the rooms empty until Friday morning.

A source in Beijing said that Kim was originally expected to watch an opera with Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday evening, but he will likely return home ahead of schedule.

Kim reportedly held a luncheon Thursday with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao at the Diaoyutai state guesthouse.