North Korea celebrated the 110th anniversary of the birth of its late founder Kim Il Sung with fireworks, proceedings and a night gala on Friday (15/4) evening in Pyongyang's main square. Thousands of people sing and dance wearing colorful traditional clothes.
"The Day of the Sun" is North Korea's largest annual public holiday. Kim, who died in 1994, founded the authoritarian regime now led by his grandson, Kim Jong Un.
Citing Reuters, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited his grandfather's grave, and attended a "national assembly and public procession" at Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square, but gave no reported public statements.
A senior official speaking at the meeting, said that North Korea will overcome all difficulties and always emerge victorious, state news agency KCNA said.
State media showed live footage of the evening gala at Kim Il Sung Square after sunset on Friday, but gave no sign of a military parade.
KCNA reported that other previous events included concerts, art exhibitions and ideological seminars. A festival of lights opens in downtown Pyongyang, with dancing fountains and decorated boats on the Taedong River.
The festival "artistically depicts" Kim Il Sung's original home and "the holy mountain of revolution, Mount Paektu," KCNA said.
Residents can take photos in front of the gate, which is illuminated with phrases such as "Pyongyang Is Best" and "We Are the Happiest in the World."
North Korea's economy has been hit by border closures and international sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes, and aid organizations have warned of a potential humanitarian crisis.
Earlier this week, Kim Jong Un gifted new apartments to some of his loyal elite, including the country's most famous TV presenter, and attended the opening of a major public housing project.
International monitors said commercial satellite imagery showed preparations for a military parade ahead of the holiday, but there was no confirmation of the parade taking place on Friday night.
The celebrations came after North Korea resumed testing in March of its largest intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), for the first time since 2017, and officials in Seoul and Washington said there were signs it would soon resume nuclear weapons testing as well. Main weapons tests are sometimes carried out on major holidays.
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