Tongues were set wagging by the no-show of Kim Jong-un at public ceremonies scheduled on 15 April to mark an anniversary of the North Korean dictator’s grandfather and founder of the Hermit Kingdom.
Hailed as the “Day of the Sun", the date has always loomed large on the country’s political calendar and is usually celebrated with pomp and pageantry.
But this year, the supreme leader kept away. There were no visuals of jumpy and tearful young women excitedly clapping upon seeing the leader pass by them.
This was unusual, to sat the least, as Kim tends to use the occasion to display his sway over the nation, and it sent the rumour mills into overdrive.