According to The Washington Post and other US news outlets citing Japanese media, Kim is in a much more serious state than previously believed, and apparently he is in a vegetative state following a stent procedure.
According to Shukan Gendai, a Chinese medic was sent to North Korea to treat Kim after he suffered some sort of heat-related illness.
The medical expert revealed that Kim fell ill while visiting the countryside earlier this month when he clutched his chest and fell to the ground suddenly. A doctor that was accompanying him administered CPR. He was then taken to the hospital where he apparently had a botched stent surgery by an unqualified surgeon.
North Korean media has failed to answer any questions regarding Kim’s health or whereabouts, despite a hashtag on Twitter trending #KimJongUnDead. TMZ even reported that Kim was dead, citing claims on an app called Weibo, where a source with 15 million followers reported his passing.
While Trump downplayed reports on Kim earlier this week, Mike Pompeo was also asked about the leader’s health and responded with,
“I don’t have anything I can share with you tonight, but the American people should know we’re watching the situation very keenly.”
Despite conflicting reports, a South Korean source told Reuters that Kim was alive and would make an appearance soon, however, they did not offer any further information on his current health.
