In rare footage, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was seen with children

South Korea’s intelligence agency said Friday it was analyzing rare state media footage showing the powerful sister of the North Korean leader. Kim Jong Un with two children — said they could be his.

The main spokesperson of the regime, Kim Yo Jong, was seen with two young people – a boy and a girl – while attending a North Korean New Year art performance.

She was seen holding the boy’s hand as the three walked together.

The isolated North has never officially released any information about Kim Yo-Jung’s marital status or children, but Seoul’s intelligence agency said it was investigating whether the children pictured on state media were his.

“We are conducting a detailed analysis, keeping the possibility open,” the statement said.

The National Intelligence Service said that they had previously determined that Kim Yo-cheng may have had a child and that the person photographed with her was in the correct age range.

Seoul’s unification ministry told AFP that the performance in Pyongyang was understood to be an event where participants would be accompanied by family members, but said it was “unusual” to see Kim Yo-cheng with children.

State media footage also showed the leader with his teenage daughter, known only as Kim Kim Ju Ae.

Seoul-based specialist website NK News said the release of the footage could be part of a “propaganda effort to humanize regime officials”.

“It is also related to a trend that began in early 2022 of elite officials in Kim Jong-un’s inner circle attending special events or assisting with disaster relief with their spouses and family members,” he said.

Kim Yo Jong has long been her brother’s closest lieutenants and one of the most influential women in the reclusive regime.

Born in 1988, he is one of three children born to Kim’s father and predecessor, Kim Jong Il, and his third known partner, Ko Yong Hui, a former dancer, according to the South Korean government.

He studied with his brother in Switzerland and rose rapidly after inheriting power after their father’s death in 2011.

In April 2015, Seoul’s intelligence agency said it believed Kim Yo Jong would give birth the following month.

Later, in 2018, a spy agency in the South said it was clear that Kim was pregnant. Visit to South Korea for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in February of that year.

This summer, the National Intelligence Service told lawmakers that Kim Jong Un appears to be gaining weight again and has obesity-related health problems, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. Known for drinking and smoking, Kim comes from a family with heart problems. Kim’s father and grandfather both managed North Korea He died of heart problems before taking power in 2011.

Kim’s health is also in the spotlight outside of North Korea, as he has not officially named a successor to lead the country’s progress. A nuclear arsenal targeting the United States and his allies, if he was incompetent.

The National Intelligence Service has assessed that Kim’s minor daughter has strengthened her presumptive status as her father’s heir. However, the agency said it could not rule out that he could be replaced by one of his sisters as he has not been officially designated as his father’s successor.