U.S. Watches Closely Amid Questions About North Korean Leader’s Health

The White House is closely monitoring developments regarding the status of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, amid speculation that the leader has undergone medical care that has limited his public appearances and affected his health.
National security adviser Robert O’Brien acknowledged that information from North Korea is scant and uncertain, and said that the Trump administration is trying to learn more.

“We’re monitoring these reports very closely,” Mr. O’Brien said Tuesday on Fox News. “They’re parsimonious with the information that they provide about many things, including the health of Kim Jong Un, so we’re monitoring those developments closely.”
South Korean officials earlier Tuesday said Mr. Kim appeared to be going through his normal schedule with his advisers outside the capital city of Pyongyang.
Mr. O’Brien didn’t say whether the White House has specific knowledge about Mr. Kim’s condition. Late Monday, U.S. intelligence officials were looking into information that suggested Mr. Kim’s condition might be grave, a U.S. official said. The situation remained fluid, the official said.

President Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday that he didn’t know the health status of the dictator. “I wish him well,” Mr. Trump said.
Daily NK, a Seoul-based outlet that bills itself as a source of news from inside the secretive country, reported that Mr. Kim had heart surgery on April 12 and was recovering at one of his countryside villas. Subsequent reports elsewhere, including CNN, cited U.S. intelligence officials saying his condition was grave.
On Tuesday, officials in Seoul said they saw no signs that North Korea’s military and government were undertaking the sort of emergency measures that would suggest Mr. Kim’s condition was serious.
“We do not see extraordinary developments inside North Korea,” a spokesman for Seoul’s presidential Blue House said.

Finally...

I pray that peace will be maintained.

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