North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un Reportedly In 'Grave Danger' After Surgery
April 20, 2020
North Korea’s Kim Jong Un is reportedly in “grave danger” after a medical procedure.
A United States official with direct knowledge of the matter told CNN Monday the U.S. is monitoring intelligence of Kim’s surgery that has come out of the hermit nation. A correspondent for NBC News also indicated that two U.S. officials said Kim was brain dead after slipping into a coma but later deleted her tweet while awaiting more details.
The Daily NK, a South Korean based website, reported earlier that an informant inside North Korea claimed that the dictator recently had a “cardiovascular surgical procedure.”
Kim missed his grandfather’s birthday celebration. The date, April 15, is known as "Day of the Sun" and celebrates North Korean founder Kim Il Sung. It is the reclusive country's most important national holiday, and Kim's absence caused some to speculate about his health.
Nothing about Kim's health has been published through North Korean media, which is completely under the control of the government.
CNN's chief national security correspondent Jim Sciutto first reported the news live on the network Monday night.
"I’m told by a U.S. official with direct knowledge that the U.S. Is monitoring intelligence that the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in grave danger following a surgery," he said. "Now, we should note that Kim, he recently missed the celebration of his grandfather Kim Il Sung’s birthday ... This raised speculation about his well-being, about his health."
Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation who once worked as CIA deputy division chief for North Korea, told CNN there have been reoccurring rumors about Kim's health since he took power in 2011 after his father Kim Jong Il's death.
"There have been a number of recent rumors about Kim's health: smoking, heart, and brain. If Kim is hospitalized, it would explain why he wasn't present on the important April 15th celebrations," Klingner said. "But, over the years, there have been a number of false health rumors about Kim Jong-un or his father. We'll have to wait and see."
There has been ongoing tension between North Korea and the U.S. over the former's nuclear program. President Trump and Kim met in Vietnam last February to discuss the acrimony, although the summit was cut short after the parties failed to reach a substantive agreement on North Korea's denuclearization. They met again in June when Trump crossed the demarcation line into North Korea.
North Korea has performed multiple missile tests since that time.
Even as the world buckled down during the coronavirus pandemic, North Korea fired short-range ballistic missiles off of its coast while claiming that not a single person in the secretive nation has contracted the virus. But the hermit nation has reportedly been quietly reaching out to the international community asking for help with testing.
There is no indication that the reported heath issue is related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Kim's last appearance in state-run media was April 11.
The Washington Examiner has reached out to the CIA, the State Department, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for comment.
