U.S. 'still assessing' N. Korea launch
03:03 - Source: CNN

Story highlights

Vast crowds of soldiers and civilians applaud speeches by officials

A controversial rocket launch by North Korea this week put a satellite in orbit

It was a public relations victory for the North's young leader, Kim Jong Un

Seoul, South Korea CNN  — 

North Korea held a huge rally Friday in the center of its capital, Pyongyang, to celebrate the launch of a long-range rocket this week that put a satellite in orbit and provoked international condemnation.

A special broadcast on state-run television showed crowds of soldiers and civilians standing in neat ranks, clapping and cheering as officials made congratulatory speeches praising the regime’s ruling dynasty.

The rocket launch Wednesday took place sooner than many observers expected and was criticized by many countries since it was widely seen as a cover for testing ballistic missile technology that North Korea has been forbidden from using by the United Nations.

Putting the satellite in orbit was a technological breakthrough for the secretive North Korean regime, and a public relations victory for its young leader, Kim Jong Un. North Korea claims the launch was carried out for peaceful purposes.

A woman reads an extra edition newspaper reporting the rocket launch by North Korea, along a street in downtown Tokyo on December 12, 2012.
A woman reads an extra edition newspaper reporting the rocket launch by North Korea, along a street in downtown Tokyo on December 12, 2012.
KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP/Getty Images
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North Korea launch sparks global anger

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