Everyone in North Korea is heartbroken over leader Kim Jong Un\u2019s apparent weight loss, said an unidentified resident of Pyongyang quoted on the country\u2019s tightly controlled state media, after watching recent video footage of Kim.
\nThe rare public comment on Kim\u2019s health come after foreign analysts noted in early June that the autocratic leader, who is believed to be 37, appeared to have lost a noticeable amount of weight.
\n\u201cSeeing respected general secretary (Kim Jong Un) looking emaciated breaks our people\u2019s heart so much,\u201d the man said in an interview aired by state broadcaster KRT on Friday.
\n\u201cEveryone is saying that their tears welled up,\u201d he said.
\nIn the clip, which Reuters could not independently verify, Pyongyang residents were seen watching a big screen on the street showing a concert attended by Kim and party officials after a plenary meeting of their Workers\u2019 Party of Korea (WPK).
\nThe broadcast did not provide any details on what had led to the weight loss.
\nWhen Kim reappeared in state media in June after not being seen in public for almost a month, analysts at NK News, a Seoul-based website that monitors North Korea, noted that his watch appeared to be fastened more tightly than before around an apparently slimmer wrist.
\nGiven Kim\u2019s tight grip on power in North Korea \u2014 and the uncertainty over any plans for a successor \u2014 international media, spy agencies, and specialists closely watch his health.
\nEarly last year speculation about Kim\u2019s health exploded after he missed the birth anniversary celebrations of state founder Kim Il Sung on April 15, only to reappear in public in early May.
\nIn 2014, state media reported that Kim was suffering from \u201cdiscomfort\u201d, after a prolonged period out of the public eye.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Everyone in North Korea is heartbroken over leader Kim Jong Un\u2019s apparent weight loss, said an unidentified resident of Pyongyang quoted on the country\u2019s tightly controlled state media, after watching recent video footage of Kim. The rare public comment on Kim\u2019s health come after foreign analysts noted in early June that the autocratic leader, who […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-200695","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n