PYONGYANG, North Korea, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Amid speculation on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's prolonged absence from public sight, attention is turning to younger sister Kim Yo Jong.
Estimated to be 27 years old, she is the youngest sibling of the Supreme Leader and appears to have risen in the ranks following the death of her father, Kim Jong Il, in 2011. At his funeral, she interacted with "pretty high level officials," noted Michael Madden, who runs the blog North Korea Leadership Watch and contributes to Johns Hopkins University's Korean Studies site.