Fascinating snapshots show what ordinary life is like in North Korea

North Korea is a regime principally known for its human rights abuses, no matter how much it seeks to convey an image of prosperity.

North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong-un, recently celebrated a successful ICBM test, calling it a present for America on their 4th July celebrations.

Meanwhile, The UN recently warned that poor rainfall, combined with poor food production, mean that the country could soon be on the brink of famine.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO), warned:

More rains are urgently needed to avoid significant decreases in the main 2017 cereal production season.

Should drought conditions persist, the food security situation is likely to further deteriorate.

A series of images have been released by the Associated Press and by Agence France-Presse depicting citizen life in the country.

It's worth noting that North Korea have routinely shielded visiting tourists from the less photogenic aspects common in the regime, such as prison camps, arbitrary detention, heavy surveillance, no freedom of speech and many other human rights violations.

1.

In this 4 July 2017 photo distributed by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, second from right, inspects the preparation of the launch of a Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in northwest North Korea's.

Picture: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP

2.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a boy running across a road in the town of Sinchon, south of Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

3.

A photo taken on 22 July, 2017 shows a man eating at a table outside a restaurant in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

4.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a group of university students walking on a street in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

5.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a group of women selling fruit beside a road on the outskirts of Sinchon, south of Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

6.

A photo taken on 23 July 2017 shows people and bicycles before the Taedong river in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

7.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a university student crossing a road in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

8.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a man leaning from the balcony of an apartment building in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

9.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a man cycling along a street before the skyline of Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

10.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows two girls sheltering from the rain beneath umbrellas near a village on the outskirts the town of Sinchon, south of Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

11.

A photo taken on 23 July 2017 shows a man looking at a mobile phone as he rides an escalator in a subway station of the Pyongyang metro.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

12.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a tour guide waiting for tourists atop the Juche tower in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

13.

A photo taken on 24 July 2017 shows a man, woman, and child crossing a road in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

14.

A photo taken on 23 July 2017 shows pedestrians waiting at the entrance to a subway station of the Pyongyang metro.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

15.

A school boy walks among soldiers at the end of a work day on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

16.

A school boy walks towards a carpark as a group of women board a bus in front residential buildings on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

17.

A man looks out the window of a double decker bus at the end of a work day on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

18.

The evening sun shines on the facade of an apartment block at the end of a work day on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

19.

A man carries his daughter as they leave the Pyongyang Circus on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

20.

A worker sits on the steps of a building which houses several dining halls for wedding celebrations, during non-opening hours on 25 July 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Picture: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

21.

A photo taken on 23 July 2017 shows a group of men waiting to pay their respects before the statues of the late North Korean leaders at Mansu hill in Pyongyang.

Picture: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

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