Kim Jong-un missing as North Korean leader absent from public view for 2 months

For over a week now, the Daily Star has observed something unusual unfolding in North Korea. Previously, the nation’s leader, Kim Jong-un, would routinely surface at the slightest occasion, greeted by enthusiastic, tearful, and cheering throngs of citizens.

However, for nearly two months, the dictator has been conspicuously absent. He hasn’t shown up at any ribbon-cutting ceremonies or public gatherings, and notably missed the significant 73rd anniversary marking the conclusion of the Korean War.

The most recent available photographs of him are actually images of a North Korean newspaper’s front page, depicting him in discussions with Chinese officials in North Korea. That appearance was on June 9, followed by virtual radio silence, marked by peculiar developments in the country’s state media, including the disappearance of photographs.

Moreover, there haven’t been any fresh images of him at large public assemblies since late March.

Earlier this week, Kim Jong-un was absent when three significant events occurred – his officials toured the self-titled Kim Jong Thae Electric Locomotive Complex in Pyongyang, and the inauguration of a “schoolchildren’s palace” in Nampho took place, reports the Daily Star.

Kim typically attends every occasion, yet Premier Pak Thae-song represented him at the Locomotive Complex in Pyongyang, and his absence from the educational facility also raised eyebrows.

He was also nowhere to be found when his own officials condemned a US-led naval exercise and responded to what it described as a “war rehearsal”.

A spokesman, identified as a “military commentator,” stated: “The deputy commander of the US Pacific Fleet openly said that the commanding role of the ROK and Japan was not a symbolic one but for the actual operation.

This goes to prove that RIMPAC, the largest-ever naval drill in the world, is, in fact, a war rehearsal of aggression led by the US, Japan, and the ROK.”

But the mystery persists… where precisely is Kim Jong-un, and why hasn’t he been spotted for months?

One hypothesis is that he’s simply dodging the extreme temperatures. Temperatures are forecast to reach a scorching 37°C this week, with humidity at approximately 59%.

However, he hasn’t surfaced on television or in internal meetings at his Pyongyang headquarters. One more extreme theory has suggested that he has actually died and his team is covering it up.

There is currently no evidence supporting this theory or suggestions of a body double, but the longer Kim Jong-un remains out of sight, the more conjecture about the situation will intensify.