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‘World’s most dangerous 13-year-old girl’ tipped to become North Korea’s next leader as major clue emerges
The girl anointed as the "world's most dangerous 13-year-old" may become North Korea's next leader.
Kim Ju-ae is the daughter of the Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, and his wife Ri Sol-ju.
The teen made her first public appearance four years ago, when her dictator father reviewed some missiles, and has since become known as the "respected daughter".
Claims about Kim Jong Un spread online
The 13-year-old made a recent appearance in the "proof of life" photos of Jong-un, which were published by North Korean state media after Chinese online sources claimed that the leader was dead or had fallen into a coma after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
Wanjun Xie, chairman of the China Democracy Party, was among those speculating about the leader's health on X.
He wrote: "It is rumored that recently, Kim Jong-Un... suffered a severe cerebral hemorrhage and fell into a coma. Although a team of medical experts from Peking Union Medical College Hospital was dispatched to North Korea to assist in his treatment, the poor medical conditions in North Korea forced Kim Jong-Un to be transferred to Peking Union Medical College for emergency treatment."
He then went even further to claim that Jong Un had "succumbed to his injuries and died ... due to the severity of his condition," per the Express.
Ju-ae was seen in "proof of life" pictures of Kim Jong-un
To dispel the rumors, North Korea's Korean Central News Agency reported that Jong-un attended a footwear exhibition on Monday, October 19, but the pictures have yet to be authenticated, and their dates remain unclear.
One image shows him looking at a tiny pink shoe being held by a young woman, believed to be his daughter, who was donning a pale pink dress.
In another snap, he can be seen standing with his legs apart, with his arms outstretched, while in conversation.
The dictator is also spotted reaching for the sleeve of a woman's coat on a mannequin, with numerous aides trailing behind him, in a third image.
Kim Jong-un has been bringing his daughter to public events
According to BBC News, it is believed that Jong-un and his wife have three children, but none of the others have ever been named or seen in public.
Questions about the leader's potential successor if he passes away have resurfaced amid the unverified reports about his health/death.
His younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, 38, has been considered an influential figure within North Korea's leadership and has been suggested as a possible interim ruler.
It has been said that she would take control for an interim period until Jong Un's 13-year-old daughter is old enough to succeed him.
South Korean lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun told reporters in February that Ju-ae was previously referred to as being "in study as successor," but now was "in the stage of being internally appointed successor," per Sky News.
Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, told CNN in 2023 that by including his family in public events, Jong Un "wants observers at home and abroad to see his family dynasty and the North Korean military as irrevocably linked".
It has been reported that the country has begun printing postage stamps featuring Jong-un and his daughter together.
If she really is her father's successor, she would succeed him, Kim Jong-il, and Kim Il Sung, and become the first woman to lead the nation.