North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears to have approved the construction of five new mansions in a part of central Pyongyang known as the “forbidden city,” NK Pro analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery shows.

They are located next to a group of new mansions built last fall in the secure Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) headquarters complex. The construction comes as Kim has urged the population to withstand economic hardships as the country maintains restrictions on foreign trade to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

According to Planet Labs satellite imagery, the five new villas