Thousands of North Koreans marked the 10th anniversary Friday of the death of the country’s former leader, Kim Jong Il. Current leader Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong Il’s son, attended a ceremony with hundreds of others at Pyongyang’s Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, the mausoleum for Kim Jong Il and his father Kim Il Sung, the founder of the country. During the ceremony, Kim Jong Un was seen bowing to a large portrait of his father but was not shown speaking. Kim Jong Il ruled the Stalinist state for 17 years, and the Kim family, which North Koreans are taught to revere, has ruled for 48 years. State-run newspapers published articles praising Kim Jong Il and called for “standing united behind respected comrade Kim Jong Un,” the North’s main Rodong Sinmun newspaper wrote in an editorial.

Source: The North Africa Journal December 17, 2021 20:11 UTC