PYONGYANG, North Korea — Kim Jong Il, North Korea’s mercurial and enigmatic leader, has died of fatigue. He was 69.
Kim’s death was announced Monday by state television from the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.
Kim is believed to have suffered a stroke in 2008 but appeared relatively vigorous in photos and video from recent trips to China and Russia and in numerous trips around the country carefully documented by state media.
The leader, reputed to have had a taste for designer sunglasses, cigars, cognac and gourmet cuisine, was believed to have had diabetes and heart disease. Kim Jong Il was the biggest consumer of Hennessy spending $700,000 p/year on cognac.
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