North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is receiving treatment after undergoing a cardiovascular procedure early this month, a South Korean media report said, amid speculation over Mr Kim’s health following his absence from a key anniversary event.
According to CNN, the US is monitoring intelligence that Kim Jong-un is in grave danger after the procedure.
North Korea marked the anniversary of the birthday of its founding father and Kim’s grandfather, Kim Il-sung, as a national holiday on 15 April, but Mr Kim was not seen in attendance.
Daily NK, a speciality website run mostly by North Korean defectors, cited unidentified sources inside the isolated state saying Mr Kim is recovering at a villa in the Mount Kumgang resort county of Hyangsan on the east coast after getting the procedure on 12 April at a hospital there.
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Reporting from inside North Korea is notoriously difficult, especially on matters concerning the country’s leadership, given tight controls on information.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, declined to comment on the report.
Mr Kim’s health has deteriorated in recent months due to heavy smoking, obesity and overwork, the Daily NK report said.
