Washington is monitoring intelligence that suggests North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s health is in danger after a surgery, according to a CNN report (HT:CFR).
The Daily NK, a Seoul-based website that gathers information from informants inside the isolated nation, reported that Kim underwent a “cardiovascular surgical procedure” and was now mostly recovered. It was impossible to immediately verify the report, which the Daily NK said was based on one person inside North Korea, Park Chan-kyong and Bloomberg report for the SCMP:
The Daily NK is part of a group of non-for-profit agencies affiliated with the South Korean Unification Ministry, and has occasionally been contacted by Seoul officials for information. The outlet’s backers include the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which awarded it US$400,000 last year to “raise awareness and understanding of the conditions in North Korea by disseminating accurate, timely and relevant news and information about the country”.
