Photographs of North Korea’s Kim Jong-un have been published by a state newspaper after rumours the dictator had died following a brain haemorrhage. The images appeared in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper, seemingly showing the dictator touring a clothing and footwear exhibition with his daughter.
Rumours suggested the North Korean leader failed to appear in public for a week. Reports on social media also suggested Kim was rushed to a Chinese hospital for urgent treatment after suffering a brain haemorrhage. The unconfirmed reports also added that he had to leave the country because of the poor medical facilities in Pyongyang.
Kim Jong-un was last seen touring a defence museum in the North Korean capital on October 11. Rumours were also spread by Wanjun Xie, chairman of the China Democracy Party, a group banned by the Chinese state authorities.
Writing on X, he said: “It is rumoured that recently, Kim Jong-Un … suffered a severe cerebral haemorrhage and fell into a coma. Although a team of medical experts from Peking Union Medical College Hospital was dispatched to North Korea to assist in his treatment, the poor medical conditions in North Korea forced Kim Jong-Un to be transferred to Peking Union Medical College for emergency treatment.
He then went even further, suggesting the dictator had “succumbed to his injuries and died … due to the severity of his condition”.
Similar rumours also spread back in 2020. At the time, he failed to appear in public for several months. The recent rumours follow reports that he is “extremely obese”, weighing more than 140kg and putting him at serious risk of cardiovascular disease, according to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service.
As reported by the BBC, “there would probably be signs beyond North Korea’s borders if there were a sudden collapse in Kim’s health”. “China could tighten security along its frontier to prepare for potential instability or refugee flows,” the BBC also pointed out.
Meanwhile, South Korea’s Intelligence Service has repeatedly warned that Kim is overweight and a heavy smoker, putting him at risk of cardiovascular disease.
Heart problems also run in the Kim family.
In the event of Kim’s death, it is thought his younger sister Kim Yo-jong, 38, would take the reins of the nuclear-armed regime.
Kim Jong-un’s sister would reportedly take control for an interim period until his daughter, 13-year-old Kim Ju-ae, is old enough to succeed him.
Kim’s reign is known for its brutal political purges and executions, ordering the deaths of hundreds of government and military officials to consolidate power, including his uncle, Chang Song-thaek, in 2013. Agents also assassinated his half-brother, Kim Jong Nam, using a toxic nerve agent in Malaysia in 2017, and public executions, often by firing squad, are a common occurrence.
