North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un Blames Seoul For Virus Outbreak and Claims Disputed Victory Over COVID-19

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shakes hands with a health official in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022. Kim has declared victory over COVID-19 and ordered an easing of preventive measures. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: “KCNA” which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un Blames Seoul For Virus Outbreak and Claims Disputed Victory Over COVID-19

 

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared victory over COVID-19 at a national meeting where his sister, in an especially combative speech, said Kim had suffered a fever himself and laid dubious blame against South Korea for the outbreak while vowing deadly retaliation.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said Thursday that Kim ordered preventive measures eased just three months after the country first acknowledged an outbreak, claiming the country’s widely disputed success would be recognized as a global health miracle.

Seen delivering a speech on TV for the first time, his powerful sister said Kim had suffered a fever while glorifying his “epoch-making” leadership and she blamed the North Korean outbreak on leaflets flown from across the border from South Korea.

Souce: Associated Press, KIM TONG-HYUNG

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