'World's most dangerous' 13-year-old girl set to follow Kim Jong-un as North Korean leader

The internet has been rife with rumors that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un has died from a brain haemorrhage this week.

North Korean state media has denied these claims, releasing 'proof of life' photos appearing to show Jong-un at a clothing exhibition, though these photos are yet to be independently verified.

Regardless of whether the 42-year-old dictator is indeed fit and well as suggested, the rumors have left a lot of people wondering what North Korea will look like when he does pass away.

According to experts, Jong-un's formidable younger sister Kim Yo Jung would be likely to take the helm after her brother's passing, before the baton is eventually handed to Jong-un's daughter, 13-year-old Kim Ju Ae.

Many would argue this is not a welcomed thought for North Koreans, as Yo Jung is considered to be far more merciless than her brother. Back in 2020, analysts warned that life in Pyongyang could only get 'worse' under her leadership.

Kim Yo Jung would take over as leader if her brother died (Chris Jung/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

According to the Express, retired US Army Colonel David Maxwell said at the time: "We have to assume that every successor is worse than the last.

"I haven't seen any evidence, any indication of how she might rule, but my speculation - given the reputation and history of the family - is that she would rule with an iron fist."

Yo Jung released a statement earlier this week in which she warned of a 'grave situation,' accusing South Korea of firing warning shots and broadcasting warning messages on several occasions since August, on the grounds that troops from North Korea had breached the border.

"A grave situation is prevailing along the southern border due to the reckless behaviour of the ROK military gangsters," Yo Jong said, using South Korea's official designation, the Republic of Korea [ROK].

Went on to say the military was 'deploying more tactical strike means along the southern border,' serving as 'preemptive and suppressive measure to deal with contingency, and of resuming the loudspeaker broadcasting against the ROK'.

Rumors suggested Kim Jong-un had died (KCNA VIA KNS / AFP via Getty Images)

Despite the 38-year-old being the second most influential figure in North Korea, her leadership would be temporary, until the post was handed to Jong-un's teen daughter.

Ju Ae has previously accompanied her father at military displays and global conferences, no doubt pruning her for when she will one day represent North Korea as its leader.

Meanwhile, Yo Jung's life has recently gone under the microscope in a biography Dr Sung-Yoon Lee, called The Sister: The extraordinary story of Kim Yo Jong, in which he warned how dangerous she may be.

"Unauthorised and undiplomatic, my biography of Ms Kim pulls few punches. Referring to her as the world's first 'nuclear despotess', hence, the most dangerous woman out there, I portray her as the de facto second-in-command to her brother, who heads a nuclear-armed and uniquely cruel regime," he told the Big Issue.