North Korean President Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in 20 days, ending a scarcity that sparked global speculation approximately his health.
Al Jazeera cited a North Korean report, saying Kim attended a completion rite of a fertilizer factory in North Korea with other senior officials - including his sister, Kim Yo Jong.
The government-run daily published confirmation and North Korean state-run media Korean Central News Agency posted a photo, confirming Kim's attendance at the ceremony.
The photo had been published in North Korean paper Rodung Sinmun, the reliable paper of the Workers' Party, as well as the South Korean news website Yonhap.
The authenticity of the photos, posted on the website of the authentic Rodong Sinmun newspaper, couldn't be verified.
Kim was seen in pictures smiling and speaking to aides at the ribbon-slicing ceremony and also touring the plant.
Kim was seen cutting the ribbon at the ceremony. Reports said attendees "burst into thunderous cheers of 'Hurrah for the Supreme Leader who is commanding the all-people general march for accomplishing the great cause of prosperity."
As with preceding public appearances at some stage in the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, Kim and his entourage were not carrying masks, not like the group of employees at the rite.
North Korea has insisted it has not recorded a single case of coronavirus, although specialists say that it is unlikely.
Analysts stated Kim couldn't appear in public carrying a mask as it'd make him look prone to the North Korean people.
Rumors about Kim Jong Un's health swirled after he ignored the April 15 birthday celebration for his late grandfather Kim Il Sung, the country's most important holiday, for the first time since he took power in 2011.
No 'unusual' sites
Seoul's unification ministry reacted to Saturday's document by way of saying "groundless" speculation about Kim had precipitated "useless confusion," calling for more careful consideration in the future.
South Korea's government, which has a mixed document of monitoring Pyongyang's ruling elite, downplayed speculation that Kim was in poor health following his surgery.
South Korea said it detected no unusual symptoms in North Korea or any emergency reaction by the country's ruling party, military, and cabinet. The South said Kim was still handling kingdom affairs but staying at a general vicinity outside Pyongyang.
It was not clear what triggered Kim's absence in the past weeks. In 2014, Kim vanished from the general public eye for almost six weeks and then reappeared with a cane. South Korea's spy organization said Kim had a cyst removed from his ankle.
Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Seoul's Ewha University, told Al Jazeera Pyongyang "probably won't explain Kim's recent absence given the secrecy around the leader's health and schedule."
China, North Korea's key diplomatic best friend and a leading issuer of trade and aid, is eager to maintain stability in its neighbor and keep away from the possibility of an influx of refugees.
North Korea is "at the epicenter of an extremely tense security crisis," involving "a nuclear standoff," Henri Feron, Senior Fellow at the US Center for International Policy, told AFP news agency. He added tens of millions of lives are at stake.
