North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has appeared in public for the first time in 40 days.
 
The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Tuesday that Kim inspected a newly-constructed residential district for scientists.
 
KCNA said Kim toured around various locations in the district, hinting that he had no trouble moving about. The report added that the reclusive leader was accompanied by senior lawmakers and military officials, including Hwang Pyong-so, director of the North Korean People's Army General Political Bureau, and Choe Ryong-hae, a secretary of the North's ruling Workers' Party.
 
KCNA, however, didn't specify the date of Kim's latest appearance in public. Considering the North Korean media's practice of reporting on the leader a day after, the latest appearance is believed to have come 40 days after he attended a recital of the Pyongyang Moranbong Art Troupe on September 3.
 
The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the North’s ruling Workers’ Party, also ran photos of Kim on Tuesday touring the residential district with a walking stick in his left hand.
 
In the seven photos, Kim was sitting or walking with the stick, suggesting that his leg is still in the process of healing.
 
With Kim not appearing in the public eye for an extended period of time, foreign media had issued various reports speculating that he could be suffering from health problems.