North Korea angrily denies Kim Jong-un executed lover
North Korea has angrily denied reports by the "reptile media" that Kim Jong-un ordered the execution of a former lover to protect the dignity of his wife.
The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said they were an "unpardonable hideous provocation hurting the dignity of the supreme leadership," adding, "Those who commit such a hideous crime ... will have to pay a very high price."
KCNA cited reports, including one in Japan's Asahi newspaper, that claimed several members of the North's Unhasu Orchestra were executed by firing squad in August for filming themselves having sex.
Kim's wife Ri Sol-ju is a former member of the orchestra, AFP reported.
Asahi claimed the rare execution of state performers, including a singer rumoured to be his former girlfriend, had been ordered to squash rumours of Ri's decadent lifestyle while she was an entertainer.