‘He Is Alive And Well’: South Korea Confident That Rumours Of Kim Jong Un’s Illness Are Wrong

Amid the growing rumours about death of North Korean supreme Kim Jong-Un, South Korea has issued a clarification stating that the he is alive and in fine health, reports India Today.

Some unconfirmed media reports have speculated that Kim could be "in grave danger" after surgery.

But South Korean officials have dismissed such speculation as untrue, saying nothing unusual was going on in the North and Kim Jong-un was believed to be staying in the Wonsan region.

Moon Chung-in, a special security adviser to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, also said Sunday in an interview with Fox News that Kim Jong-un was "alive and well", reports Yonhap News Agency.

On Monday, South Korea's Unification Ministry on Monday reaffirmed no unusual signs have been detected in the North.

"We have nothing to confirm in regards to speculation over leader Kim Jong-un's health. However, our stance that there is no unusual activity currently in North Korea, as announced by the National Security Council, is still in effect to this point," Cho Hey-sil, the Ministry's deputy spokesperson, told the media.

The Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone is one of Kim Jong-un's key pet construction projects.

The leader, who sent a similar thank-you message to the workers in February, has sought to develop the North's tourism in an effort to beef up an economy faltering under international sanctions.

Kim Jong-un was last seen in state media on April 11 presiding over a political bureau meeting of the ruling Workers' Party, calling for strict measures against the coronavirus.

But his absence from a key ceremony commemorating the 108th birth anniversary of Kim Il-sung on April 15 has sparked speculation over his health.

He has never skipped his trip to the mausoleum since taking office in late 2011.

North Korean state media have recently put out reports on Kim sending diplomatic letters and conveying gifts to honoured citizens.

"Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has sent his appreciation to the workers who devoted themselves to building the Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone," Yonhap News Agency quoted Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper, as saying in a report.

The Korean Central Broadcasting Station also carried a similar report.

(With IANS Inputs)