N Korea leader Kim’s wife ‘pregnant’

The wife of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is said to be pregnant.

Photographs have emerged of Ri Sol-ju wearing the same loose-fitting clothing as she wore in late 2012 before her first child.

The couple already have a daughter, while Kim is also thought to have a daughter from a previous relationship.

Analysts believe Kim is anxious to have a son to maintain the dynasty founded by his grandfather in 1948.

In the latest photograph published by Pyongyang’s mouthpiece Rodong Sinmun, Ri is seen wearing a loose-fitting gown and also appears to have put on some weight.

The image that appeared on February 18 on the front page of the North Korean daily bears a striking resemblance to the one put out in October 2010 in which she was seen wearing a similar dress. It later turned out that Ri was actually pregnant.

Chung Sung-jang of the Sejong Institute told the South Korea-based daily Chosun Ilbo she could be three to five months into her pregnancy.

Very little is known for certain about Ri; some analysts have even said her name “almost certainly is a pseudonym”.