Are the kids alright? Photo of two children from Kim Jong-un's family fuels succession speculation

The secretive Supreme Leader of North Korea has revealed two more members of his family to the world, fuelling speculation that one of the two could be in line to succeed him.

In photos circulating on the internet on the New Year's bash in Pyongyang, Kim Jong-un's sister Kim Yo-jong can be purportedly seen walking with two children.

While up until now, Kim Ju-ae, the Supreme Leader's daughter, was the only member of her generation to have been in the public eye, these new photos have sparked speculation about succession in Pyongyang.

For those unaware, North Korea, which has its share of patriarchal norms, has never had a female leader, and the possibility of Kim's daughter succeeding him had baffled many.

Now, however, with photos showing Kim's sister with his purported nephew and niece, speculation is rife that the nephew could succeed the Supreme Leader, given that he is male and comes from the bloodline of Kim Il-sung, the founder of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

An expert who spoke with The Daily Mail seemed to confirm the same, saying, "It belies perceptions that Kim Ju-ae is [the] hereditary successor."

"With this event we know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Kim Yo-jong has a son. This means she has produced a legitimate male heir to the Mount Paektu revolutionary leadership of Kim Il-sung," Michael Madden, the founder of research body North Korea Leadership Watch, was quoted as saying by The Daily Mail.

While the world knows that Kim has a daughter, it is not known whether the Supreme Leader has a son and nothing to that end has also been reported either—given the secrecy surrounding North Korea's ruling family, the rest of the world typically relies on state media to confirm the existence of members.

Although Kim Jong-un is rumoured to have two other children—including a son—besides Kim Ju-ae, they have never been spotted in public, and as such their existence remains under question, despite reports from the South suggesting that that Kim has hidden his son from public view for being too 'pale and thin'.

While there was some brief speculation that the two children pictured during New Year's celebrations were Kim's other kids, they were quickly dismissed after the children were seen walking hand-in-hand with Kim's sister, believed to be their mother.

That being said, nothing is set in stone, and South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) is now trying to verify whether the two kids in the photo are indeed Kim Yo-jong's children.