North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in ‘grave danger’ following surgery: Report

[mountaineer]

No one seems to believe it.

Jennifer Zeng 曾錚  @jenniferatntd
Vice director of HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television says North Korea leader kim jong un is dead.

2:58 PM · Apr 24, 2020

[Applewood]

Nah, Kim just has a cold.  LOL

Isn't that what was said every time some old geezer premier of the former Soviet Union was at death's door?

[mountaineer]

Kim Jong Un in ‘vegetative state,’ Japanese media report says
By Dana Kennedy
April 25, 2020 | 10:45am

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un is in a “vegetative state” after he underwent heart surgery earlier this month, a Japanese magazine says.

The weekly Shukan Gendai reported Friday that a Chinese medic sent to North Korea as part of a team to treat Kim believed a delay in a simple procedure left the leader severely ill, Reuters reported. ...

The Chinese expert told the magazine that Kim clutched his chest and fell to the ground on a visit to the countryside earlier this month. A doctor accompanying Kim performed CPR and took him to a nearby hospital. ... NY Post

[mountaineer]

Sat Apr 25, 2020 / 7:26 AM EDT
Exclusive: China sent team including medical experts to advise on North Korea’s Kim

(Reuters) - China has dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.

The trip by the Chinese doctors and officials comes amid conflicting reports about the health of the North Korean leader. Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signaled in terms of Kim's health.  ...

A U.S. State department spokeswoman had no comment. U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, when asked about Kim's health on Fox News after Trump spoke said, "I don’t have anything I can share with you tonight, but the American people should know we're watching the situation very keenly."  ... Reuters

[Gefn]

The question is, will his successor be worse?

[Smokin Joe]

The question is, will his successor be worse?

I believe that is entirely possible.

[mystery-ak]

 North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un rumored to be dead

By Dana Kennedy

April 25, 2020 | 12:36pm

Kim Jong Un is rumored to be dead, according to a Hong Kong broadcast network, while a Japanese magazine is reporting that North Korea’s rocket man is in a “vegetative state” after he underwent heart surgery earlier this month.

A vice director of HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television, a Beijing-backed broadcast network in Hong Kong, claimed that Kim was dead, citing a “very solid source.” Her post on the Chinese messaging app Weibo has been shared widely on social media, according to a report in the International Business Times.

Other unconfirmed reports, attributed to senior party sources in Beijing, said an operation to insert a stent went wrong because the surgeon’s hands were shaking so badly.

https://nypost.com/2020/04/25/north-korean-dictator-kim-jong-un-rumored-to-be-dead/

[mountaineer]

The question is, will his successor be worse?

I wonder if they'll really go with his sister as the next dictator.

... Power has traditionally passed through male heirs, but the 36-year-old despot has no male adult children — leaving Kim’s brother and sister as the most obvious choices to replace him as ruler, according to various reports.

His sister Kim Yo Jong is a senior member of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea and is considered the most powerful woman in North Korea, according to a 2019 National Interest investigation. ...

But North Korean politics is patriarchal and it’s unlikely a woman will be made leader, however powerful she is.   ...

This leaves Kim’s older brother, Kim Jong Chol, who was already passed over by their father when he was considering a successor.  ...

According to a report by the UK Independent, Kim Jong Chol is more interested in staying out of the spotlight and was once described by an alleged former employee as too “girlish” to lead.

He was last spotted at an Eric Clapton concert in London in 2015 and likes to play the guitar, the report said. ...

More at NY Post

[PeteS in CA]

While I'd love to hear that he died of 40 mm poisoning, I'll save my somber rejoicing for NoKo's state funeral.

[corbe]

   Hypothetical Question:  IF he is dead and the new Leader declares the following agenda

A. Give up ALL nuclear ambitions, allow inspectors anytime.
B. Free & Fair elections
C. Stop eating pets


   Would you finance their entry into the 21st Century?



   I say screw em, let SK and Vietnam do it.

[Smokin Joe]

   Hypothetical Question:  IF he is dead and the new Leader declares the following agenda

A. Give up ALL nuclear ambitions, allow inspectors anytime.
B. Free & Fair elections
C. Stop eating pets


   Would you finance their entry into the 21st Century?



   I say screw em, let SK and Vietnam do it.

If some general doesn't take over, I'd bet the sister does.
Just mho, but I'd bet she is hard as nails and will be a formidable adversary.
More so than her dead brother.

At this point, with what the Chinese have pulled (I know, a different people, but a close ally), let them find their own way into the 20th, oops, I mean 21st century. My father fought in that war, and it has only been agreed that a cease fire is in effect. The war is not really over and will not be until an armistice is signed.

[corbe]

[mystery-ak]

'Kim Jong-un dead' – multiple sources claim North Korean dictator died Saturday night
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1273869/kim-jong-un-dead-north-korea-kim-jong-un-health-latest-kim-jong-un-dead-reports

[Formerly Once-Ler]

https://twitter.com/DPRK_News/status/1254099824619720705

DPRK News Service @DPRK_News

Marshal Kim Jong-Un pines for the fjords.

12:27 PM · Apr 25, 2020

[Formerly Once-Ler]

Heart surgery? What, did he get one installed?

[Elderberry]

Is Kim Jong Un dead? Here’s what we know and don’t know

American Military News by  Ryan Morgan 4/25/2020

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2020/04/is-kim-jong-un-dead-heres-what-we-know-and-dont-know/

On Saturday rumors surrounding the North Korean leader again began to circulate after the vice director for HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television claimed a “very solid source” has said that Kim is dead.

On Friday the Japanese magazine Shukan Gendai reported Kim is in a comatose state or possibly brain dead after a botched emergency cardiac surgery. The claims echo reports earlier in the week which speculated Kim was in a compromised health state following an April 12 medical procedure. The speculation came after North Korea observers noticed Kim was not seen during the April 15 birthday celebrations for his grandfather, the late North Korean founder Kim Il Sung.

South Korean and U.S. officials have cast doubt on the initial claims regarding Kim’s health since the speculation began. Kang Min Seok, a spokesman for President Moon Jae In told the South Korean Yonhap News Agency that the South Korean government has seen no unusual signs out of North Korea.

“There is nothing we can confirm with regard to Chairman Kim’s alleged health problem” Kang said.

[mountaineer]

Dennis Rodman is praying for Kim Jong Un's recovery: 'I hope it's just a rumor'
The former Bulls standout has been friends with the North Korean leader since 2013
    by Chris Bengel
 Apr 23, 2020 at 1:45 pm ET 

Dennis Rodman is worried about the health of his friend Kim Jong Un. According to TMZ Sports, Rodman has been praying for the North Korean leader to make a full recovery after learning of Kim's reported health problems.

"I hope it's just a rumor that Marshal Kim Jong Un is sick. Hopefully I will find out more soon," Rodman said. "There is still so much work we have to do between both the USA and DPRK. If he is not feeling well, I am praying for his speedy recovery, so that both my friends [President Trump & Marshal Kim] can continue towards a peaceful success."  ... CBS Sports

It was a beautiful friendship, reminiscent of:

[mountaineer]

If Li'l Kim's sis becomes the next supreme leader and dictatorial poohbah of NK, will American feminists celebrate the ascension of a woman to a country's top spot? (Still no female US president, we note!!) Will she murder 80 people for every 100 a male dictator would?

[mountaineer]

Sydney Watson @SydneyLWatson
If Kim Jong Un really is dead, I'd like to know when can we expect the Washington Post article calling him an "austere rocket scientist"...
6:55 PM · Apr 25, 2020

[corbe]

[PeteS in CA]

His new home is a turnip truck?

[PeteS in CA]

If Li'l Kim's sis becomes the next supreme leader and dictatorial poohbah of NK, will American feminists celebrate the ascension of a woman to a country's top spot? ... Will she murder 80 people for every 100 a male dictator would?

If Sister Kim becomes NoKo's Fearless Leader she's probably more likely to kill 100 for Kim III's 80. I seriously want to be wrong, but she's probably in the same mold as Jiang Qing.

[Smokin Joe]

Dennis Rodman is praying for Kim Jong Un's recovery: 'I hope it's just a rumor'
The former Bulls standout has been friends with the North Korean leader since 2013
    by Chris Bengel
 Apr 23, 2020 at 1:45 pm ET 

Dennis Rodman is worried about the health of his friend Kim Jong Un. According to TMZ Sports, Rodman has been praying for the North Korean leader to make a full recovery after learning of Kim's reported health problems.

"I hope it's just a rumor that Marshal Kim Jong Un is sick. Hopefully I will find out more soon," Rodman said. "There is still so much work we have to do between both the USA and DPRK. If he is not feeling well, I am praying for his speedy recovery, so that both my friends [President Trump & Marshal Kim] can continue towards a peaceful success."  ... CBS Sports

It was a beautiful friendship, reminiscent of:

Everybody needs a friend. Even Dennis.

(Louis --or Rick, for that matter--was far better friend material.)

[mountaineer]

If Sister Kim becomes NoKo's Fearless Leader she's probably more likely to kill 100 for Kim III's 80. I seriously want to be wrong, but she's probably in the same mold as Jiang Qing.

That's the impression I've gotten, too, that she would be much more ruthless than Li'l Kim. The question is whether the military, et al., would accept a female leader - no matter her family heritage.

[Elderberry]

Speculation is rife! An "unusual increase" in North Koreas artillery's readiness amid conflicting reports about the health of the North Korean leader after a visit from a delegation of top Chinese doctors may have visited him

The Big Wobble 4/25/2020

http://www.thebigwobble.org/2020/04/speculation-is-rife-unusual-increase-in.html

SEOUL, April 24 (Yonhap) -- North Korean media outlets have stayed mum on leader Kim Jong-un's whereabouts without putting out any reports on his public activity amid persisting speculation over his health. Speculation about Kim's health problems spiked after CNN reported earlier this week, citing a U.S. official, that Washington is looking into intelligence that Kim is in "grave danger" after a surgery. North Korea's state media have recently put out reports on Kim sending diplomatic letters and conveying gifts to honoured citizens but stopped short of providing reports or photos featuring his public activity. However today Reuters reported China has dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.

The trip by the Chinese doctors and officials comes amid conflicting reports about the health of the North Korean leader. Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signalled in terms of Kim’s health. A delegation led by a senior member of the Chinese Communist Party’s International Liaison Department left Beijing for North Korea on Thursday, two of the people said. The department is the main Chinese body dealing with neighbouring North Korea. The sources declined to be identified given the sensitivity of the matter.

More at link.