Overview
- State media said Kim Jong Un presided over the completion of Saeppyol Street, cut a ribbon, toured apartments and presented housing licenses to relatives of soldiers killed in overseas operations.
- Photos released by KCNA showed Kim accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, whose repeated high‑profile appearances prompted South Korea’s intelligence service to say she appears to be in the process of being designated as successor.
- Intelligence services report North Korea sent thousands of troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine, with casualty estimates varying and South Korea’s NIS recently citing about 6,000 killed or wounded.
- Analysts describe the new district and related memorials as tools to honor ‘martyrs,’ mitigate domestic discontent and justify the troop deployments ahead of the Workers’ Party meeting this month.
- Separately, KCNA announced the completion of a multi‑year drive to build 50,000 homes in Pyongyang, saying the final 10,000 units in Hwasong were finished as Kim pledged even larger projects to come.