North Korea has published a new set of apparent “proof of life” images showing Kim Jong Un examining shoes and women’s clothing, following a wave of unverified social media claims that the leader had died after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
Released by state media on Monday, the photographs depict a seemingly animated Kim inspecting children’s footwear, gesturing toward officials and looking over women’s coats at a garment and footwear exhibition.
The images emerged only hours after sensational allegations spread online claiming that the 42-year-old North Korean leader had suffered a massive cerebral hemorrhage, fallen into a coma and died after being taken to Beijing for emergency medical treatment.
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Kim toured the exhibition on Monday. However, the photographs have not been independently authenticated, and it is not clear when they were actually taken.
One photograph shows Kim leaning forward to examine a small pink shoe held by a young woman dressed in a pale pink, double-breasted outfit.
In another image, the North Korean leader stands with his legs apart and arms extended, his mouth open as though speaking emphatically to an official.
A third photograph shows Kim reaching toward the sleeve of a rust-colored women’s coat displayed on a mannequin as several aides follow behind him.
The apparent public appearance followed a series of dramatic allegations posted on X on Sunday by Wanjun Xie, a US-based Chinese dissident linked to the China Democracy Party.
Xie first claimed that Kim had died and that China had sent 9,000 troops to Pyongyang over fears of a succession crisis.
He later alleged that specialists from Beijing’s Peking Union Medical College Hospital had traveled to North Korea on Saturday to treat Kim after he suffered a severe cerebral hemorrhage.
According to Xie’s unsubstantiated account, Kim fell into a coma and was moved to Beijing, where doctors reportedly failed to save him.
Xie further claimed that the leader’s body was then secretly transported back to North Korea.
The allegations were not supported by medical records, photographs, named witnesses or any other independently verifiable evidence.
Even so, the claims spread widely on social media and were reported by several international outlets, including The Sun, which described them as unverified speculation.
The rumors also prompted speculation over whether Kim’s influential sister, Kim Yo Jong, had assumed control of the secretive North Korean regime.
The newly released photographs appear to be aimed at countering the reports about Kim’s death, although Pyongyang has not directly commented on the allegations.
Kim’s health has been under international scrutiny for years.
On Sept. 30, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told lawmakers that Kim weighed about 140 kilograms, or approximately 309 pounds, and faced an increased risk of cardiovascular disease because of his severe obesity.
Nevertheless, the spy agency said it had detected no significant signs of ill health, reportedly citing Kim’s ability to run up stairs during an inspection of a naval destroyer.
North Korean state media previously reported that Kim attended the inauguration of the National Defense Revolution Museum on Oct. 11, with an account of the ceremony published two days later.
That appearance preceded the alleged medical emergency and therefore could not refute claims that his condition had suddenly deteriorated.
The latest death scare also echoes a notorious false alarm in 2020, when Ji Seong-ho, a North Korean defector who became a South Korean lawmaker, claimed he was 99% certain Kim had died following cardiovascular surgery.
Kim subsequently appeared in public, and Ji apologized for spreading the erroneous claim.
That six-year-old prediction resurfaced during the latest frenzy, with some online accounts presenting it as fresh evidence that the North Korean leader had died.
The Post has sought comment from the governments of North Korea and China as well as from Peking Union Medical College Hospital.
