Questions resurface about Kim Jong Un

South Korea tried once again to quell rumors about North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s health on Monday. The Japanese magazine Shukan Gendai, citing an anonymous member of Kim’s medical team, reported last week that the dictator collapsed on a trip to the countryside this month. He needed a stent, but a delay in the surgery left him in a vegetative state, according to the report. In response, a state-run newspaper in North Korea reported Kim was alive and well and sent a thank you letter to builders in the resort town where he has stayed the past few weeks. South Korean officials reiterated they have no intelligence to indicate anything is amiss in the North.

What’s really going on? Kim’s health status remains unclear. Reuters reported on Friday that China sent a team of international liaisons, including doctors, to North Korea to consult with officials there about Kim’s health. His last reported public appearance took place at a government meeting on April 11. Kim has disappeared from the public eye for as long as a month before.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Angela Lu Fulton’s report about a North Korean defector who lives in Japan.

Editor’s note: WORLD has updated this report since its initial posting.