North Korean Leader’s Half-Brother Reportedly Killed in Malaysia

The estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been killed in Malaysia, a South Korean government source said on Tuesday.

Kim Jong Nam, the older half-brother of the North Korean leader, was known to spend a significant amount of his time outside the country and had spoken out publicly against his family’s dynastic control of the isolated state.

He was believed to be in his mid-40s.

Police in Malaysia told Reuters on Tuesday an unidentified North Korean man had died en route to hospital from Kuala Lumpur airport on Monday. Abdul Aziz Ali, police chief for the Sepang district, said the man’s identity had not been verified.

An employee in the emergency ward of Putrajaya hospital said a deceased Korean there was born in 1970 and surnamed Kim.

South Korea’s TV Chosun, a cable television network, said that Kim was poisoned at Kuala Lumpur airport by two women believed to be North Korean operatives, who were at large, citing multiple South Korean government sources.

Kim Jong Nam and Kim Jong Un are both sons of former leader Kim Jong Il, who died in late 2011, but they had different mothers.

Kim Jong Nam was believed to be close to his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, who was North Korea’s second most powerful man before being executed on Kim Jong Un’s orders in 2013.

In 2001, Kim Jong Nam was caught at an airport in Japan traveling on a fake passport, saying he had wanted to visit Tokyo Disneyland. He was known to travel to Hong Kong, Macau and mainland China.

He said several times over the years that he had no interest in leading his country.

“Personally I am against third-generation succession,” he told Japan’s Asahi TV in 2010, before his younger had succeeded their father.

“I hope my younger brother will do his best for the sake of North Koreans’ prosperous lives.”

IFP Editorial Staff

The IFP Editorial Staff is composed of dozens of skilled journalists, news-writers, and analysts whose works are edited and published by experienced editors specialized in Iran News. The editor of each IFP Service is responsible for the report published by the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website, and can be contacted through the ways mentioned in the "IFP Editorial Staff" section.

Recent Posts

“Iran Hamdel” campaign sends aid to Gaza amid war

Aid items donated by millions of Iranians within a national campaign, have reached the beseiged…

10 hours ago

Iranian deputy FM: Cooperation with Saudis serves as a successful model for fostering peace and security

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht Ravanchi has said Iran and Saudi Arabia are committed…

10 hours ago

Official: Iran responds to IAEA resolution with increased nuclear enrichment capacity

Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesperson for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), says the organization…

12 hours ago

Pictures: Demonstrators in Tehran support people of Gaza, Lebanon

Hundreds of people gathered in Tehran on Friday morning in front of the United Nations…

12 hours ago

Int’l lawyer: US plans to sanction countries cooperating with ICC on Netanyahu arrest

An international law expert and analyst has revealed the U.S. plans to impose punitive measures…

15 hours ago

Minister of science: 25% of Iranian university professors emigrated due to economic challenges

Iran’s Minister of Science, Research, and Technology, Hossein Simayee Saraf, addressed on Thursday academic migration…

15 hours ago