North Korea: Kim Jong-un 'fathered third child in February'

The first lady of North Korea gave birth to Kim Jong-Un’s third child in secret six months ago, according to intelligence reports.

Ri Sol-Ju, who is thought to have married the country’s supreme leader in 2009, disappeared from the public eye for several months last year, provoking speculation that she was pregnant or had fallen foul of the regime’s strict rules.

Little is known about the mechanics of North Korea’s political system, the couple’s relationship or Kim himself. Neither the child’s name or gender have been revealed so far.

Kim is the third generation of his family to rule the country. It is believed that only a male can be heir to the throne.

In 2013, former NBA star Dennis Rodman, who frequently visits the country, revealed that the couple had a baby girl in 2012, named Ju-Ae.

It has been widely reported that Kim fathered his first child with Ri in 2010, although no other details are known.

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Ri Sol-Ju has only been seen in public twice in the last year, following similar long-term disappearances in 2011 and 2015.

It was only in 2012, three years after the pair’s reported marriage, that she was first seen in public.

The story was reported by South Korean news agency Yonhap as news emerged of North Korea’s ballistic missile launch over Japan.

Japanese officials said the missile took off from Pyongyang and flew over the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido before landing in the Pacific Ocean.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he was “outraged” at the latest missile launch, which comes after North Korea threatened to fire missiles towards the US territory of Guam.

In a tweet, he said: “Outraged at reckless provocation by #NorthKorea. Strongly condemn latest illegal missile launch by #DPRK”

South Korea threatened to “exterminate” Kim Jong-un as tensions across East Asia heightened, responded by launching four F-15 fighter jets and dropping eight MK-84 bombs against a simulated target at the Pilsung training range on the border of the two countries.

South Korean Colonel Lee Kuk-No warned: “If North Korea threatens the security of the South Korean people and the South Korea-US alliance with their nuclear weapons and missiles, our air forces will exterminate the leadership of North Korea with our strong strike capabilities.”

A formal statement release by the South Korean government shortly after said: “We are fully ready for any threat from the North and will make unwavering efforts to protect the lives of our people and the security of our nation.”