Kim Jong-un

North Korea leader Kim Jong-un 'suffered fever' during Covid outbreak

Kim Yo-jong also blamed South Korea for her country's outbreak - saying it sent leaflets contaminated with Covid across the border.

South Korea rejected the claims as "groundless".

Ms Kim was speaking as her brother declared victory in the country's battle against Covid.

The secretive country announced its first Covid outbreak in May and has reported fever infections and deaths since. But there is widespread doubt over the data, especially the low number of deaths.

Kim Jong-un weight loss remark aired on state TV

The Supreme Leader's health is usually off-limits in a country where his image is firmly controlled by state media.

The country's main television channel has also shown footage of Mr Kim looking thinner than in recent years.

There have been persistent rumours about the North Korean leader's health in the decade he has been in power, but they have rarely been acknowledged by the country's notoriously secretive government.

What did North Korean viewers see?

Kim Jong-un appears in public, North Korean state media report

KCNA news agency reports that the North Korean leader cut the ribbon at the opening of a fertiliser factory.

It adds that people at the factory "broke into thunderous cheers of hurrah" when he appeared.

The reported appearance - his first since an event on state media on 12 April - comes amid global speculation over his health.

The latest reports from North Korean media could not be independently confirmed.

State media later released images that it said showed Mr Kim cutting a ribbon outside a factory.

Kim Jong-un illness rumours denied amid intense speculation

Headlines that Kim Jong-un was "gravely ill", "brain-dead" or "recovering from an operation" were always going to be impossible to verify.

But the presidential office in Seoul has said there have been no particular signs from the North to indicate the 36-year-old is "gravely ill".

It is also not the first time rumours about his health have fired up intense flurries of speculation - only to be later dismissed.

Trump and Kim Jong-un to meet 'as soon as possible'

The shock announcement was made by senior South Korean officials in Washington, who passed on a letter from the North Korean leader.

They said Mr Kim had also agreed to halt nuclear and missile tests and was "committed to denuclearisation".

It appears to be a major breakthrough after months of threats and violence.

The South Korean delegation had held unprecedented talks with Mr Kim in Pyongyang earlier this week.

Trump would 'absolutely' talk to North Korea on phone

US President Donald Trump says he would "absolutely" be willing to talk on the phone to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and that he hopes a positive development results from talks between North Korea and South Korea.

North Korea agreed on Friday to hold official talks with South Korea next week, the first in more than two years, hours after Washington and Seoul delayed a military exercise amid a standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs.

North Korea claims CIA plotted to kill Kim Jong-un

A North Korean referred to only as "Kim" was paid to carry out an attack with biochemical substances, the ministry of state security said.

The plot was foiled, it said, but gave no details on the fate of "Kim". The CIA declined to comment and South Korea has issued no statement so far.

The North's claim comes amid continued high tension on the Korean peninsula.

US President Donald Trump has promised to "solve" North Korea and stop it developing nuclear weapons.

 

Donald Trump: I would be honoured to meet Kim Jong-un

"If it would be appropriate for me to meet with him, I would - absolutely. I would be honoured to do it," he told news organisation Bloomberg on Monday.

The previous day he described Mr Kim as a "pretty smart cookie".

The comments come amid escalating tensions over North Korea's nuclear programme.

The White House issued a statement following Mr Trump's remarks, saying North Korea would need to meet many conditions before any meeting between the two leaders could take place.

Kim Jong-nam: Body 'arrives in Pyongyang' in exchange deal

North Korea had requested the body, but has not confirmed its identity.

It was released as part of a deal under which nine Malaysians previously prevented from leaving North Korea have now arrived home.

The two countries had been locked in a diplomatic row in the wake of the killing in Kuala Lumpur last month.

Both countries had banned each other's citizens from leaving.

Three North Koreans have been allowed to leave Malaysia, Malaysia's chief of police said.

China clamps down on Kim Jong-un 'fatty' jokes

The terms "Kim the Fat" - and variations, such as "Kim Fat III" or "Kim Fatty III" - have appeared on social media sites throughout the year, particularly on China's most popular platform, Sina Weibo.

But in response to unverified reports that North Korea had asked China to stamp out the abuse, Weibo users have been coming up with more creative names.

The latest to appear online - and it doesn't translate easily - is "Kim III half-moon". The "third" in the title refers to the fact that his late father and his revered grandfather were also called Kim.