Kim Jong Un: What Are Intelligence Agencies Keeping Under Wraps About the Enigmatic Leader’s Health?
Conflicting accounts have circulated in recent hours about North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s health, following claims that he suffered a severe brain haemorrhage and fell into a coma.
Some accounts claimed he had died in a Chinese hospital. Pyongyang subsequently sought to curb the rumours by publishing photographs it described as new, showing the leader with his wife and daughter.
Kim’s health has fuelled widespread speculation about the future of power in North Korea, with questions surrounding what happened and the reliability of official photographs that have not entirely dispelled the rumours.
Claims of a Coma and Death
The rumours began on October 18 and 19, when accounts on X circulated claims that Kim had suffered a severe brain haemorrhage requiring urgent medical intervention and transfer to a hospital in Beijing.
According to an investigation published on Tuesday by South Korean outlet Chosun Biz, one of the main accounts originated with Xie Wanjun, a Chinese dissident based in the United States. He claimed that a team of cerebrovascular specialists from Peking Union Medical College Hospital travelled to North Korea on October 17 to try to save the leader.
In posts on October 18, the activist alleged that Kim’s condition had deteriorated, requiring his transfer to Beijing. He subsequently went as far as claiming that Kim had died and that his body had been secretly returned to Pyongyang.
He also described extraordinary Chinese measures to manage the situation and arrange a transfer of power in North Korea, including the deployment of 9,000 troops to Pyongyang.
However, Chosun Biz stressed that these claims were not supported by medical records, independent testimony or any reliable evidence. Neither Beijing nor Pyongyang issued official confirmation.
Rumours Across Borders
The brain haemorrhage rumours quickly crossed borders and spread widely after Western newspapers, including The Sun and the New York Times, covered the claims on October 19, drawing on circulating accounts of a coma.
Chosun Biz reported that Turkish and Ukrainian newspapers also picked up the story, further expanding its reach.
The coverage was accompanied by succession analyses, most of which focused on the possibility of Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, temporarily assuming power until his daughter reached the legal age to succeed him.
Photographs Change the Picture
As claims that Kim was in a coma intensified, North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency and the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper published photographs on Tuesday that they said documented his visit on Monday to the 2026 National Clothing and Footwear Exhibition.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, Kim appeared alongside his wife, Ri Sol Ju, and daughter, Kim Ju Ae, inspecting locally manufactured goods and discussing the development of light industries with officials.
Despite the significance of the photographs’ release, most Western media outlets said they could not verify when the images were taken because of restrictions on journalists working in North Korea.
What Does South Korean Intelligence Know?
The latest information available to South Korean intelligence describes a health condition that “warrants monitoring”, but provides no evidence of an acute medical crisis.
On September 30, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told parliament’s intelligence committee that Kim weighed approximately 140 kilograms and suffered from severe obesity, increasing his risk of cardiovascular disease.
South Korean broadcaster KBS quoted lawmakers who attended the briefing as saying the intelligence service had detected no acute health crisis, despite information confirming his severe obesity.
The intelligence service cited footage of Kim quickly climbing stairs while inspecting a naval destroyer, which it regarded as an indication that he retained the ability to carry out his usual activities.
Not the First Time
This is not the first time rumours have circulated about the North Korean leader suffering a serious health crisis. In 2020, his absence from certain official events prompted widespread speculation that he had died or undergone major surgery, before his reappearance dispelled the rumours.
These episodes show how the secrecy surrounding Kim fuels speculation about him and those around him, particularly his health, which becomes the subject of suspicion whenever he disappears from public view for a few days.
