Is Kim Jong-un in a Coma? North Korea Releases New Photos

Update, October 20: North Korea's state news agency KCNA has released new photos of Kim Jong-un visiting the National Clothing and Footwear Exhibition 2026 in Pyongyang, together with his wife Ri Sol-ju and daughter Kim Ju-ae. According to South Korea's Yonhap news agency, the visit took place on October 19. The date of the images has not been independently verified and Pyongyang has not addressed the claims directly, but the pictures undercut reports that the leader was incapacitated or dead.

Where the rumour came from

The claims were spread on X on October 18 by Xie Wanjun, a US-based Chinese dissident who describes himself as a leader of the China Democracy Party. He wrote that medical staff from Peking Union Medical College Hospital had been sent to North Korea and that Kim had suffered a brain haemorrhage, later claiming he had died in Beijing. He offered no medical records or eyewitness accounts. The story was then picked up by British and American tabloids, including The Sun, the New York Post and the Daily Express, and spread to media in India, Ukraine and Turkey.

What Seoul says

Officials at South Korea's diplomatic and security ministries told the Seoul Economic Daily they had not heard of any such information and called the rumour "absurd". No government has confirmed a hospitalisation, and there is no independent evidence of a medical emergency or a transfer of power.

What is actually known

• Before the rumours, Kim was last shown in public on October 11, during a visit to a defence museum in Pyongyang. State media published those images on October 13.
• On October 20, KCNA published the new exhibition photos with his wife and daughter.
• On October 19, his sister Kim Yo-jong issued a statement through KCNA about possibly resuming loudspeaker broadcasts toward South Korea. It said nothing about the leader's health or any change of power.
• On September 30, South Korea's National Intelligence Service told lawmakers that Kim weighs about 140 kg and faces cardiovascular risks linked to obesity, but that no clear signs of health problems had been detected.

Why these rumours keep coming back

A similar story spread in April 2020, when Kim's long absence from public view led to claims that he had died or was in a coma. He later reappeared in public and the reports proved false. Analysts say North Korea's closed information environment makes such rumours easy to start and hard to disprove until state media show the leader again, which is exactly what happened this time.

What happens next

North Korea almost never comments on its leader's health. The new photos are the clearest signal so far that Kim remains active, but they come from state media and cannot be checked independently. We will update this article if more information emerges.

Read also: Who would lead North Korea after Kim Jong-un? What Seoul's spies say

Read next
North Korea Fires Several Ballistic Missiles as Tensions With Seoul Mount
What Is Known About the Reported Plot Against Poland's Prime Minister Tusk
What the Houthis’ Escalating Attacks on Saudi Arabia and Aden Mean for the Region

Around Prague, based on reporting by Seoul Economic Daily, Nation Thailand / Yonhap, Geo News, The Sunday Guardian. Photo: Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0