Defector Claims South Korean Jim Jong-un Ordered His Aunt Poisoned For Protesting Against Her Husband's Execution

 

Dictator Kim Jong-un ordered his own aunt to be poisoned, a North Korean defector has claimed.

In an interview, one of the most senior officials to defect said Kim was responsible for the death of his aunt Kim Kyong Hui - wife of Jang Song Thaek who was executed late 2013.

Kim had Jang, 67, his one-time political mentor described as the second most powerful figure in North Korea, killed on an array of charges, including treason and corruption.

'On May 5th or 6th of last year, Kim Jong-un ordered his aunt, Kim Kyong Hui to be killed,' the defector told CNN. 

Mrs. Kim Kyong Hui and Her husband

In November last year, it was reported Ms Kim, 68, died from a stroke during an impassioned argument about her husband's execution.

She was a close aide to her brother Kim Jong-il for decades, assuming senior positions in the party and becoming a four-star general in 2010.

The stroke claims were made by Kang Myung-do, a defector who was son-in-law to North Korea's ex-Prime Minister, Kang Sun San.

Korean media reported she committed suicide five days after her husband's execution. 

But it's now been claimed Ms Kim was murdered after she complained about her husband's death.

The latest defector to speak out, who has not been named, also said Kim Jong-un's uncle was arrested, tried and executed in an 'underground secret room' in less than a week.

After his execution, direct family members were said to have been shot dead and other relatives were sentenced to labour camps.

Ms Kim was frequently seen at the side of her nephew and his wife at public events until January last year, when her last public appearance was in the documentary shown on North Korean Central TV.

In that footage, aired in January, she was seen walking with the leader and his wife towards the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun in the capital, Pyongyang, to pay tribute to the embalmed bodies of former leaders Kil Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. 

The Kim family has ruled the reclusive, impoverished state for more than six decades with an iron fist and a pervasive personality cult.