‘Recent’ Jong-il pictures could be months old

PICTURES of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il issued by the communist state may be several months old and possibly taken before his reported illness, South Korean media have said, raising more questions about his health.

North Korea’s state TV broadcast pictures of Kim on Saturday inspecting a women’s military unit, as the reclusive country stepped up a campaign to show its “Dear Leader” was healthy after US and South Korean intelligence officials said he may have suffered a stroke in August.

The photographs of Kim, looking generally healthy as he talked outdoors with women soldiers, were the first in nearly two months.