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Photographs published by North Korean state media on October 20, 2026, show leader Kim Jong Un examining children’s footwear, touching clothing displays and issuing instructions to officials during a visit to the National Garment and Footwear Exhibition the previous day. The images, distributed by the Korean Central News Agency, depict the 42-year-old accompanied by his wife Ri Sol-ju and daughter Kim Ju-ae at the Pyongyang event featuring more than 77,000 clothing items and 170,000 pairs of shoes. According to a briefing relayed by Yonhap News Agency, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service detected no signs of a medical emergency or leadership change inside North Korea.
The speculation began with posts on X by Wanjun Xie, a US-based Chinese dissident affiliated with the China Democracy Party, who alleged without supporting evidence that Kim had suffered a severe cerebral haemorrhage, entered a coma and was transferred to Peking Union Medical College Hospital in Beijing. Xie later claimed the leader had died there before his body was returned secretly to North Korea, assertions that were amplified by outlets including The New York Post and The Sun. South Korean diplomatic and security officials told the Seoul Economic Daily they had heard nothing to corroborate the claims, which lacked medical records or eyewitness accounts.
A September 30, 2026, assessment from South Korea’s National Intelligence Service placed Kim’s weight at approximately 140 kilograms and identified him as high risk for cardiovascular disease due to obesity, heavy smoking and a family history in which both his father and grandfather died of heart-related issues. The agency noted that Kim continued to demonstrate physical capability, including running up stairs during a naval destroyer inspection, and showed no clear abnormal health indicators under monitoring by his personal medical team. North Korean officials have sought medicines abroad for obesity-linked conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, according to a 2024 briefing to South Korean lawmakers reported by Bloomberg.
This episode echoes a 2020 incident in which North Korean defector and South Korean lawmaker Ji Seong-ho claimed he was 99 percent certain Kim had died after cardiovascular surgery, a statement that unravelled when the leader appeared publicly weeks later and prompted an apology from Ji. UPI reported at the time that such speculation often originates from limited information leaking through North Korea’s foreign trade networks or defector accounts. A study published in the International Journal of Contents examined how similar death rumours spread on YouTube in South Korea, noting that both mainstream and personal channels continued circulating claims even after they were debunked.
North Korea expert Benedict Rogers told The Sun that previous leadership deaths had triggered visible public mourning with wailing crowds and emotional state broadcasts, none of which has materialised in this case. “There have been rumors of his death before. He does not look healthy and is extremely overweight,” Rogers said. “Either that will happen, or if he is still alive, they will release some evidence that he is alive.”
Uncertainty over succession contributes to the attention these rumours attract, as Kim has elevated his daughter Kim Ju-ae’s profile in state media without formally naming her as heir in a system that has never been led by a woman. The National Intelligence Service reported in November 2025 that Kim is intensifying independent idolisation efforts, including mosaic murals and badges, to shift focus from succession discussions. A report from The Asia Business Daily cited the agency as stating this approach aims to build a ruling foundation surpassing that of his predecessors while preparing for potential dialogue with the United States.
The information vacuum surrounding North Korea’s leadership has historically invited unverified reports, a dynamic analysed in coverage of past rumour cycles including 2012 Chinese social media claims about Kim that The Diplomat traced to strains in Beijing-Pyongyang relations. No independent intelligence agency has confirmed any health crisis, and the swift release of the latest photographs serves to reassert normalcy in a nuclear-armed state where access to the inner circle remains tightly restricted.
