North Korean army stages mass rally as loyalty to Kim dynasty

2013-12-16 75

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: EDIT CONTAINS EDITED KRT MATERIAL

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)

North Korean state television has broadcast video of a massive rally by its army pledging loyalty to the Kim dynasty, as the reclusive country prepares to mark the second anniversary of the late leader Kim Jong-il's death.

The video shows thousands of North Korean soldiers gathering at a square of the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, a giant mausoleum preserving bodies of his late father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung.

In a rare admission of factionalism within the North Korean government, Kim's uncle, Jang Song Thaek, was purged and then executed last week - a period South Korean President Park Geun-hye described as a "reign of terror".

Jang was considered the second most powerful man in the secretive country. His execution was the biggest upheaval in years as the ruling dynasty sought