North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has reportedly made his first public appearance in over a month, Yonhap News Agency reports.
Pyongyang's state media agency says Kim was touring a newly built housing complex, according to Yonhap.
It's worth noting that the North Korean state media agency is basically a propaganda tool, and it's still unclear why Kim has been absent from public view since September.
State media reportedly released photos of Kim walking with a cane as proof that he's reappeared, but did not say when the photos were taken, according to CNN.
Speculation about what happened to Kim has been mounting since he was seen limping across a stage during at the anniversary memorial service of his grandfather and the nations' founding president, Kim Il Sung:
Since his last public appearance at a concert Sept. 3, Kim has missed high-profile public events that he would normally attend, fueling speculation that something was amiss, the Associated Press notes.
North Korean observers have theorized that Kim is suffering from health problems, that he's no longer in control of the country, or that he's in the midst of an attempted coup.
Considering the fact that people have been predicting the downfall of North Korea for decades, the latter two scenarios don't seem likely.
The most plausible explanation for the dictator's absence is that he was recovering from some sort of operation or dealing with other health issues. A source with access to North Korea's leadership told Reuters that Kim hurt his leg while overseeing military exercises, while other North Korean officials have said that his health is fine.
North Korean state TV previously alluded to an illness, saying "Kim is suffering from uncomfortable physical condition," but did not elaborate on what was ailing him.
Foster Klug writes for the Associated Press:
This bewildering ability to command attention by doing nothing said a lot about the North's propaganda focus on Kim as the center of everything. Remove for 40 days the sun around which that propaganda spins and the international media, both traditional and social, exploded with curiosity.
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