Even a North Korean dictator needs a cigarette break! Kim Jong-un stops off 'for smoke in HOSPITAL

• Dictator questioned staff about hospital's cleanliness
• He told them hospitals should be 'neat and splendid'
• South Korea warns 'don't make the mistake of a third nuclear test'
• North Korea reported to be under martial law and ready for war
• Country's third nuclear weapon test expected imminently

By Sean O'hare
Kim Jong-un has been pictured smoking a cigarette while inspecting a newly built hospital in North Korea, as his country gears up for war.
Mr Kim reportedly asked questions to staff about the cleanliness of the Taesongsan General Hospital built by the People's Army in Pyongyang and said that hospitals in general should be 'neat and splendid.'
The latest picture of the young dictator comes amid reports North Korea has been placed under martial law with the leader telling his troops to 'be ready for a war.'
South Korea recently warned the North not to make the mistake of conducting a third nuclear test and its president summoned top security officials for an unscheduled meeting on Thursday, amid signs the rival was moving ahead with preparations.

Mr Kim reportedly asked questions to staff about the cleanliness of the hospital and said that hospitals in general should be 'neat and splendid', while touring with a cigarette in hand

In an emergency meeting of his top defence and security officials on Saturday,Kim Jong-Un issued a series of orders that included the conclusion of preparations for a new nuclear test, the Joongang Daily reported.
The decision to press on with North Korea's third nuclear test comes despite international pressure to refrain from doing so.
South Korean protesters yesterday wore masks of the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, and his wife Ri Sol Ju during a rally in Seoul against a possible nuclear test.

 

Earlier this month the US and China made a deal under which the UN Security Council will expand existing sanctions against North Korea for staging a ballistic missile test.
North Korea has gradually become more isolated and unpredictable since it started its nuclear weapons testing programme.
The fear among the west is that repeated testing will eventually give the country the technology to fire long range nuclear missiles to mainland America.
Whether the stress of international pressure explains why Mr Kim is seen smoking in the hospital is unclear, but what is for sure is Mr Kim's penchant for a smoke.

Relieved: Kim Jong Un smokes a cigarette at the General Satellite Control and Command Centre after the launch of the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket carrying the second version of Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite

In December a set of photographs were released showing him smoking moments after North Korea successfully launched a satellite into space, an act that earned him virtual global condemnation, alienating even long-standing allies such as China and Russia.
Despite the success, experts say North Korea is years from even having a shot at developing reliable missiles that could bombard the American mainland and other distant targets.
A missile program is built on decades of systematic, intricate testing, something extremely difficult for economically struggling Pyongyang, which faces guaranteed sanctions and world disapproval each time it stages an expensive launch.
North Korea will need larger and more dependable missiles, and more advanced nuclear weapons, to threaten U.S. shores, though it already poses a shorter-range missile threat to its neighbors.

South Korean protesters wear masks of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, and his wife Ri Sol Ju during a rally in Seoul yesterday against a possible nuclear test by North Korea

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