Kim Jong-un seen commanding party, government and military leaders


The body of North Korea’s deceased leader Kim Jong-il was revealed in Pyongyang through state TV on Tuesday, while grief-stricken North Koreans broke down in tears in the streets.

Kim’s third son Jong-un, the heir apparent, paid respect to his father while top military and Workers’ Party officials held the ceremony at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, where Kim Il-sung’s embalmed body has been kept since his death in 1994.

The disclosure of Kim’s body came about 78 hours after his death at 8:30 Saturday, sooner than the 94 hours it took for the display of his father Kim Il-sung’s body in 1994.

Kim’s body was covered with a red blanket with his head laid on a white pillow in a glass coffin, according to still images captured from state TV. His face did not indicate an injury.

Kim’s body is likely to be embalmed and kept at the memorial palace indefinitely, just like his father, news reports said.

Earlier in the day, the North Korean Central News Agency said in a dispatch that “Kim Jong-un observed a moment’s silence in the bitterest grief” together with other top officials.

The top officials included Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly Chairman Kim Yong-nam, Premier Choe Yong-rim, North Korean military officer Ri Yong-ho.

The news agency described Jong-un as “a great person born of heaven,” an expression previously used only for Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-sung.

Kim Jong-il, who had long drawn international attention for his incessant nuclear ambitions, died of a heart attack on a train ride on Saturday.

His death came as the North was accelerating efforts to transfer power to his third son Jong-un. The succession process gained speed after Kim apparently suffered a stroke in the summer of 2008.

By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)