Rumors and speculation over the North Korean leader’s health began after he did not appear at a key state holiday on April 15. He has not been seen in public since.
South Korea media last week reported that Kim may have undergone cardiovascular surgery or was in isolation to avoid exposure to the new corona virus.North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is “alive and well”, a top security adviser to the South’s President Moon Jae-in said, downplaying rumors over Kim’s health following his absence from a key anniversary.
The state-controlled North Korean media has been silent about Kim’s whereabouts in recent weeks. The state-run Korean Central News Agency released a photo of him, dated April 11, which it said shows Kim attending a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea in Pyongyang. However, neither the content nor the date of the photo could be independently verified.
Earlier this week, the North Korean leader was gravely ill following heart surgery. China had dispatched a team to North Korea to advise on Kim’s health, the media report further said.
Moon’s special adviser on national security Moon Chung-in said, “Our government position is firm,” in an interview with CNN on Sunday. “Kim Jong Un is alive and well.”
