I was suspicious of the recently released photos of Kim Jong-il and now the Marmot has confirmed my suspicions that the photos were fake:

Yonhap, citing an intelligence official, reports that experts believe the photos were taken in July—August, judging from the foliage. Some even believe the photos may have been from an August 2003 or July 2004 visit to the unit in question — KPA Unit 821 is based in Tongcheon, Gangwon-do, well within South Korea’s signal intelligence net, and nobody detected a recent visit by the Big Man. [Marmot's Hole]

Here is a Yonhap comparison of Kim Jong-il’s pictures from earlier this year compared to what was released recently:

Okay you be the judge: