- Kim Jong Un's younger sister and right-hand-woman, Kim Yo Jong, is a mysterious figure whose life has piqued international curiosity.
- The believed-to-be 30-year-old was last seen accompanying her brother to Hanoi, Vietnam, for a second summit with President Donald Trump in February.
- She has rapidly become North Korea's most powerful woman, who is frequently seen side-by-side with her brother and plays a key role in his administration.
- But NK News reported this week she may have been kicked out of North Korea's top decision-making body, suggesting a fall from favor.
As North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has sought to raise his international standing, a figure seen by his side almost constantly during his meetings with world leaders is none other than his younger sister, Kim Yo Jong.
During last year's summit between the United States and North Korea, Kim Yo Jong was front and center during the historic show of diplomacy with President Donald Trump.
She played a similar role in February for a second summit between Kim Jong Un and Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam. She was even spotted holding a crystal ashtray as her brother took an early morning smoke break.
It's not the first time Kim Yo Jong has made headlines — she traveled to South Korea during the 2018 Winter Olympics in February, becoming the first member of North Korea's ruling family to visit the south since the Korean War in the 1950s.
But now, she may have been kicked out of North Korea's high-profile ruling politburo, NK News reported this week, suggesting a fall from favor.
Like her brother, and much of the rest of their family, few details are known about Kim Yo Jong and the life she lived before reaching a prime leadership role in the North Korean government.
Here's what we know about her so far.
DON'T MISS: Mystery children and sibling rivalries — this is Kim Jong Un's family tree
Like many of Kim's family members, Kim Yo Jong's exact age is difficult to pin down. But she's believed to be between 29 and 31.
She's the youngest child of former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and his consort Ko Yong Hui, a former dancer.
Source: Business Insider
She was partly educated in Switzerland, at the same school Kim Jong Un attended. But she returned to North Korea in 2000 after completing the US equivalent of the sixth grade.
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/961416981013344256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Kim Yo Jong as a girl: this is the earliest photo we have of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, taken while she was at school in Switzerland. pic.twitter.com/LrDFgGBzdt
Source: North Korea Leadership Watch
See the rest of the story at Business Insider