North Korea has released a statement from Kim Jong-un in an effort to prove he is not dead amid ongoing rumours about his health.
Kim is reported to have sent a thank you message to builders working in the seaside resort of Wonsan.
Rumours have swirled about the North Korean dictator after it was reported he was either dead, gravely ill or in a vegetative state.
State-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun has now reported Kim sent a personal letter to builders working on a tourism project in Wonsan.
Wonsan is also the location where what is believed to be Kim’s armoured private train was spotted, and where he may be hiding out amid the coronavirus pandemic.
It is unclear if the letter was actually sent by Kim, and no new pictures of the leader have been released by state media.
South Korean intelligence has said they are confident that Kim is alive and well, but US officials continue to investigate.
Kim was last seen at a meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party to discuss the coronavirus threat on April 11, and is claimed to have undergone heart surgery on April 12.
The North Korean leader was then suspiciously absent from the national birthday celebrations of his late granddad Kim Il-sung, known as the Day of the Sun.
Chinese journalist Shijian Xingzou said a “very solid source” told her the North Korean leader had died.
She has 15 million followers on Chinese social media site Weibo, and she is also the niece of one of the the country’s foreign ministers.
Separately, a Japanese media outlet claimed Kim was in a “vegetative state” after undergoing heart surgery.
Other unverified rumours state Kim may have been injured during a recent missile test as there are reports of panic buying in North Korea.
The Sun UK