Kim Jong Un’s ‘princess’ sister may have been kicked out of North Korea’s ruling body, suggesting a fall from favor

Associated Press/Ahn Young-joon

• Kim Jong Un’s sister may have been kicked out of North Korea’s top decision-making body, NK News reported, suggesting a fall from favor.
• Kim Yo Jong was not listed as an alternate member of the ruling party’s politburo during an important party gathering last week, the North Korea news site reported.
• She is widely referred to as North Korea’s "princess" and has accompanied Kim Jong Un to multiple international events, including the recent summit with US President Donald Trump in Vietnam.
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Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the woman considered the most powerful woman in the country, may have been kicked out of North Korea’s high-profile ruling politburo, NK News reported, suggesting a fall from favor.

Kim Yo Jong was not listed as an alternate member of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) politburo — the party’s top decision-making body — and did not appear at any high-profile events during a important party gathering last week, NK News reported, citing state media.

The circumstances of her apparent ejection from the politburo are not clear.

Kyodo News via Getty Images

Kim was, however, seen at some party meetings, at a session of the Supreme People’s Assembly, and in a photo of "members of the newly elected party and state leading organs," NK News noted — suggesting that she has not been left out in the cold completely.

Read more: Meet North Korea’s most powerful woman, Kim Yo Jong: Kim Jong Un’s 30-ish sister who holds his ashtray and helps run his government

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Kim catapulted to fame in 2017 after she was promoted as the head of the WPK’s propaganda department, and became an alternate member of the WPK’s politburo.

She is widely referred to as North Korea’s "princess" — a nickname her father and former leader Kim Jong Il gave her when she was young.

She has accompanied her brother to multiple international events, including the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in 2018, where she sat next to US Vice President Mike Pence, and Kim Jong Un’s second summit with President Donald Trump this February.

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It’s not clear if she will accompany Kim Jong Un to his first summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which could come as early as next week, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.

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Source: Business Insider – ama@businessinsider.com (Alexandra Ma)