“Kim Jong-il, also written as Kim Jong Il, birth name Yuri Irsenovich Kim (according to Soviet records) (16 February 1941/2 – 17 December 2011), was the supreme Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). He was the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, the ruling party since 1948, Chairman of the the National Defence Commission of North Korea, and the Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army, the fourth-largest standing army in the world.

In April 2009, North Korea's constitution was amended to refer to him implicitly as the “Supreme Leader”. He was also referred to as the “Dear Leader”, “our Father”, “the General” and “Generalissimo”. His son Kim Jong-un was promoted to a senior position in the ruling Workers' Party and is heir apparent. In 2010, he was ranked 31st in Forbes Magazine's List of The World's Most Powerful People. The North Korean government announced his death on 19 December 2011”. – Wikipedia

Portrait painting of Kim Il Sung (Left) and Kim Jong Il (Center) are seen inside a government building on April 2, 2011 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Photo by Feng Li/Getty Images)

South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, left, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, right, hold hands as they sing a song titled “We Are Hoping For Reunification”, June 15, 2000 at the Baekhwawon Guest House in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Photo by Newsmakers)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il inspects a military unit in North Korea. (Photo by Korean Central Television/Yonhap)

South Korean protestors burn portraits of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il and North Korean flag during a anti-North Korea rally at the National Assembly on May 25, 2010 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il (L) listens to South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun (2nd R) while his wife Kwon Yang-Sook (R) looks on before their meeting on October 3, 2007 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Photo by Pool/Getty Images)

North Korean defectors hold defaced posters of North Korea leader Kim Jong-Il and his son Jong-un as they participate in a anti-North Korea protest in front of the South Korean Defense Ministry on November 29, 2010 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)