Murder at the airport
Amid the bustle of passengers in the departure hall of Kuala Lumpur airport, two women assassinated the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. In a brazen attack, they delivered a fatal poison which left the unsuspecting victim dead before he could reach a hospital.
Who was Kim Jong Nam
Kim Jong Nam, 46, was the son of Kim Jong Il and Song Hye Rim, a leading actress at the time. Despite being the former leader's eldest son, he was hidden from public view for years because his father and actress mother were not legally married.
Bloodline of the Kim family
Spouse, mistress or consort
Spouse Offspring
Kim Il Sung
(1912-1994)
Founder of North Korea,
"Great Leader" and
"Eternal President"
Kim Jong Suk
(1918-1949)
Jang
Song Thaek
(1946-2013)
The North's second
most powerful man
before being
executed in 2013
Kim
Jong Il
(1941-2011)
"Dear Leader"
Assumed office
in 1993
Kim
Kyong Hui
(b. 1946)
Song
Hye Rim
(1937-2002)
Kim
Yong Suk
(b. 1947)
Ko
Yong Hui
(1952-2004)
Kim Ok
(b. 1964)
Kim
Jong Nam
(1971-2017)
Kim
Sul Song
(b. 1974)
Believed to be
killed by The
North's operatives
Kim
Jong Chol
(b. 1981)
Kim
Jong Un
(b. 1984)
Kim
Yo Jung
(b. unknown)
Kim Han Sol
(b. 1995)
Kim Jimmy
(b. 1997)
Kim Sol Hui
(b. 1998)
His movements
Most of Kim Jong Nam's recent life was spent overseas after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had issued a 'standing order' for his assassination. On the day of the murder, he was about to leave on a flight to Macau, where he lived with a wife and two children. He is also known to have a previous wife and son in Beijing.
Previous wife and
son live here
Lived here with second wife
Poisoned and killed
At the airport
The incident happened at KLIA2, the budget terminal at Kuala Lumpur International Airport located 2km away from the main terminal.
Main
terminal
Satellite
terminal
RECONSTRUCTING the crime scene
The attack happened as Kim walked towards the check-in counters in the departure hall. Two female attackers administered the suspected poison before fleeing the scene.
Still image from a CCTV footage appears to show (circled in red) a man purported to be Kim Jong Nam being accosted by a woman in a white shirt at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia on Feb 13, 2017. The image has been modified by Reuters for illustration purposes. FUJITV/via Reuters TV
Information
Desk
Check-in
counters
Entrance
from Gateway
KLIA2 Mall
1One of the women stood in front of Kim Jong Nam while the other walked behind him and held a cloth over his face. The suspects then quickly went their separate ways.
2Kim made his way to the information desk to seek help after feeling dizzy.
3Kim was escorted towards the entrance where security personnel were informed of the incident. He was then taken downstairs to a medical clinic. He died before reaching hospital.
The suspects
Authorities have already detained a number of suspects including the female who apparently administered the suspected poison.
Doan Thi Huong
Vietnamese
Age: 26
ARRESTED
Main attacker who grabbed and poisoned Kim Jong Nam. Was pictured in the white 'LOL' shirt.
Siti Aisyah
Indonesian
25
ARRESTED
Lived in Jakarta before looking for work in Malaysia. Believed to have distracted Kim while her accomplice approached him from behind.
Muhammad Farid
Jallaludin
Malaysian
26
ARRESTED
Aisyah's boyfriend.
Ri Jong Chol
North Korean
47
ARRESTED
Was an employee of a Malaysian herbal medicine company.
The North Korean suspects
According to Malaysian police, the four suspects arrived in Malaysia just days before the attack and are believed to have fled the country on the day Kim Jong Nam was attacked.
Ri Ji Hyon
North Korean
33
IDENTIFIED
O Jong Gil
North Korean
55
IDENTIFIED
Hong Song Hac
North Korean
34
IDENTIFIED
Ri Jae Nam
North Korean
57
IDENTIFIED
North Korea's purge campaign
If confirmed as a North Korean assassination, it would be the latest in a string of killings at home and abroad meant to silence those perceived by North Korea's leaders as threats to their authority.
Kim Jong Un has a record of executing those who pose a threat or cross the regime. Around 140 executions have taken place since Kim took power in 2011, according to the Institute for National Security Strategy, a research arm of South Korea's National Intelligence Service.
Estimated
number
of government
officials killed
by year
Kim Yong Jin
Cabinet Deputy Prime Minister
Choe Yong Gon
Cabinet Deputy Prime Minister
Byun In Sun
Director of Operations, General Staff of the People's Army
Hyon Yong Chol
Head of Military Force of the People
Jo Young Nam
Vice-chairman of National Planning Commission
Jang Song Thaek
(Kim Jong Un's uncle)
Vice-chairman of the National Defence Commission; Chief of the Central Administrative Department of Workers' Party
Jang Su Gil
Vice-head of Party/
Chief of the General Staff of the People's Army
Ri Yong Ha
First Head of Party
Ri Yong Ho
Chief of the General Staff of the People's Army
• First official to be purged.
Notes: The family tree is based on available information; Some reported reasons why officials were executed: expressing anti-party or counter-revolutionary sentiments; corruption; plotting the overthrow of the state; presenting different opinion to Kim Jong Un; talking back and expressing discontentment towards policies; having no fruitful outcome; dozing off during meeting; clapping half-heartedly, and faulty posture during meeting.
Sources: Reuters; Institute for National Security Strategy
Graphic: Reuters
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