Despite being on a hiatus, BTS cannot stop making headlines. The remaining four members of BTS - RM, V, Jimin, Jung Kook, have started their 18-month mandatory South Korean military service. New photos of all the seven members together after months, ahead of V and RM’s enlistment on Monday, have surfaced online.
BTS' account on X shared the group photos and captioned it (translation), "Have a nice trip (purple heart emoji). Fighting (purple heart emoji)." All the members posed for a few group pictures, before bidding farewell to RM and V in front of their boot camp in Nonsan. This photo also marks Suga's first public appearance since his enlistment.
BTS' eldest member Jin, who was the first to enlist, also shared a photo of himself with RM and V ahead of their military enlistment. He wrote in his Instagram caption in Korean (translation), "Don't get hurt and drive safely my babies."
j-hope also took to Instagram to share candid pictures. The post captions (translation), "Time is flying!!! Ouch!!! (purple heart emoji)."
On December 11, the duo was accompanied by other members of BTS, including Jimin and Jung Kook, who will start their military service today, December 12, and the three others, who were given a day off from military duty, as per a report by Yonhap news agency.
"I'm really sad that I can't make happy memories with my ARMY for the time being, so it's okay if I take one out, but it's the hardest not to see the ARMY." V wrote on Weverse, wishing fans well and happiness. RM also wrote, "For 18 months, if it's long, if it's short, I believe this will be some strange and new period of inspiration and learning for all of us."
Since announcing a break from group activities in June 2022, BTS members have gone solo before starting military service. Jin joined the army last December, followed by j-hope in April and Suga in August. The group has promised many surprises for their fans in their absence before their comeback in 2025.
