Some North Korea watchers have speculated that Mr Kim might be in a bunker, since the communist country is believed to have gone on a quasi-war footing after the UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning the missile tests.
In 2003, Mr Kim disappeared for seven weeks when his hardline regime quit the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and the United States invaded Iraq.
Cheong Seong-chang, a North Korea analyst at the independent Sejong Institute, attributed Mr Kim's latest absence to massive flood damage in the country, saying he has shied away from the public in times of crisis in the past.
Mr. Kim is a coward and pathetic leader. He keeps his people starving while he tries to build more weapons to fight wars he can't possibly win. He wants to be on TV and he wants to be part of history.
Read the full story.