Kim Jong-un’s aunt dies in mysterious circumstances - World - NZ Herald News
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The aunt of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un has died in mysterious circumstances, it was reported today.
Kim Kyong-hui, 67, whose husband Jang Song-Thaek was executed under Jong-un’s orders less than a month ago, is said to have either suffered a heart attack or committed suicide by North Korean media.
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Once a key figure in the totalitarian regime, Kyong-hui, the sister of Kim Jong-un’s father, former leader Kim Jong-il, has not been seen in public since 10 September, when she was spotted at a concert with her nephew and his wife.
Despite her husband having been executed, Kyong-hui’s life was believed to be safe, particularly when she was chosen to join other dignitaries planning the funeral of a senior Workers Party official who died last month.
She is said to have suffered from alcoholism and depression since the death of her only child, daughter Jang Kum-song, who killed herself in Paris in 2006.
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Toshimitsu Shigemura, a professor at Tokyo’s Waseda University and an authority on North Korean affairs, (…) [told the Daily Telegraph]
“Her disappearance will inevitably cause a lot of political problems in Pyongyang. Kim Jong-un may be trying to cover her disappearance up for a while to consolidate his own political strength.”