North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made a public appearance on 3 September 2014 and quietly "disappeared" immediately thereafter, spending weeks out of the public eye without immediate explanation. North Korea is notorious for a lack of transparency, and soon global speculation centered upon Kim's notable absence and whether he'd been injured or even arrested and deposed.
Chatter inspired by Kim Jong-un's sudden disappearance reached a fever pitch on 10 October. Doctored images of the North Korean leader in which he appeared to be bloodied and under guard circulated social media sites like Facebook and Twitter:
The image of Kim above was not authentic, but the North Korean leader remained missing and interest in his whereabouts escalated. On 14 October, North Korean state-run media reported that Kim Jong-un appeared publicly and displayed images of the leader visiting newly-built housing units in Pyongyang.
The New York Times reported:
Images of Kim circulated and video from North Korean media aired globally:
The Guardian quoted an expert on North Korean relations on why the regime might take pains to conceal a possible illness or injury:
Kim Jong-un's prolonged absence led to suspicions of a coup in North Korea but Delury believes such a large-scale shift would be impossible to conceal, even in the notoriously secretive state.
Last updated: 14 October 2014