Official media photos show the North Korean leader’s sister accompanied by two children

The South Korean intelligence service announced on Friday that it was analyzing a rare video recording of its kind published by the North’s official media, showing the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un accompanied by two children.

North Korean regime spokeswoman Kim Yo Jong was seen accompanied by a boy and a girl while attending an artistic performance on the occasion of the New Year. She held the boy’s hand as the three walked together.

North Korea has not officially revealed any information about Kim Yo Jong’s family situation, but Seoul’s intelligence agency said it is trying to verify the issue of whether the North Korean leader’s sister is the mother of the two children who appeared in the official media recording.
“We are conducting a detailed analysis while keeping the possibilities open,” the agency said in a statement.

The intelligence service stated that it had previously discovered that there was a possibility that Kim Yo Jong had children, and the age of the two children in the photo matches the information available to the agency.

The Seoul Unification Ministry told AFP that during the event held in Pyongyang, participants are usually expected to be accompanied by their family members, but it explained that seeing Kim Yo Jong accompanied by children is “unusual.”
State media videos also showed Kim accompanied by his teenage daughter, Jo Ae.

For its part, the Seoul-based specialized website NK News pointed out that publishing the photos may fall within “propaganda efforts aimed at humanizing regime officials.”

He added, “It also follows a trend that began in 2022, based on showing elite officials within Kim Jong-un’s close circles arriving to attend special events or donating aid after disasters, accompanied by their spouses and family members.”