‘It’s Not True’: South Korea Trashes Sensationalist CNN Report on Kim Jong-un

Yonhap also found no evidence of Kim enduring any medical hardships ongoing at North Korea’s embassy in Beijing and Chinese government sources told Reuters they, too, had no evidence of a medical emergency in Pyongyang.

Late Monday night, CNN – an American left-wing news network with a long history of publishing poorly-sourced or false news reports – published a story titled “U.S. Monitoring Intelligence that North Korean Leader Is in Grave Danger After Surgery.” The story cited anonymous officials “familiar” with news about Kim’s health who stated only that the U.S. government was concerned about Kim’s health.

“A second source familiar with the intelligence told CNN that the US has been closely monitoring reports on Kim’s health,” the outlet declared.

The Chinese coronavirus – a newly discovered pathogen that is particularly life-threatening to individuals with preexisting medical conditions – is currently fueling a pandemic that has killed at least 171,000 people. North Korea claims it has not identified any coronavirus cases within its borders despite being sandwiched between China, where the pandemic originated, and one of the most affected countries by it, South Korea.

Kim, believed to be in his mid-30s, is widely considered to be suffering from obesity. Some estimates put his body mass index (BMI) at 45. The high end of a healthy BMI ends at 25; anyone over 30 is considered “obese,” according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Kim is also believed to be a heavy smoker, a risk factor for coronavirus complications.