Jin of BTS on June 13 greets fans at Jamsil Arena in Seoul's Songpa-gu District, after finishing his mandatory military service the day before at the Republic of Korea Army 5th Infantry Division Recruit Training Center in Yeoncheon-gun County, Gyeonggi-do Province. (Big Hit Music)

By Xu Aiying

BTS member Jin has signaled his return to the entertainment world, reuniting with his fans at the event 2024 Festa in Seoul after completing his mandatory military service.

With the meetup marking the 11th anniversary of the boy band's debut, Jin on the afternoon of June 13 attended a meetup with the group's global fan community Army at Jamsil Arena in Seoul's Songpa-gu District. He gave hugs to 1,000 fans selected to attend in the first part of the event, followed by another meeting with 4,000 more fans in the second.

In his first fan meeting after leaving the military, an excited Jin said, "Since it doesn't feel like time has passed, I thank everyone for their persistent patience," adding, "I'll always stand with Army to be your light."

Cheerful fans from around the world attended the event to enthusiastically welcome him. Those online also watched Jin through a livestream on the fan community platform Weverse and wrote real-time messages in their mother tongues to congratulate his return.

To mark his discharge from the military, Jin (third from left in second row) on June 12 reunites with BTS members at the headquarters of their management agency Hybe Entertainment in Seoul's Yongsan-gu District. (BTS' official X account) 

Jin's return was more significant because he was discharged the day before the 11th anniversary of BTS' debut. On the morning of June 12, he left the Republic of Korea Army's 5th Infantry Division Recruit Training Center in Yeoncheon-gun County, Gyeonggi-do Province, as the first of the group's seven members to finish military duty.

The other members, who are still doing their mandatory service, applied for leave to welcome Jin's return. J-Hope, RM, V, Jimin and Jungkook visited the center to exchange hugs and smiles with him. 

Later that day, Suga joined them at the headquarters of their management agency Hybe in Seoul's Yongsan-gu District. 

Major foreign media such as The New York Times, Reuters, AFP and NHK covered Jin's discharge and the Festa event, greatly raising expectations of the group's next move.

BTS will resume its activities after June next year, when all of its members complete their military service.

xuaiy@korea.kr