South Korean intel believes that Kim Jong-un has lost up to 20 kilos (3 stone or 44 pounds) with the help of a severe diet.
"Kim Jong-un recently lost around 10 to 20 kilograms of weight, and is conducting normal governance activities", Kim Byeong-kee, a Democratic Party legislator and a memeber of the intelligence committee, said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un addresses a conference of cell secretaries of the ruling Workers' Party in Pyongyang, in this undated photo released on April 7, 2021 by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
© REUTERS / KCNA
Kim Jong-un was out of the public eye for almost a month, only reappearing at the end of June, and looking much thinner than before.
The state-run North Korean media addressed the issue, saying that the nation's leader had lost weight because he was working for the good of the country. At the same time, a wave of media speculations erupted, suggesting that Kim's weight loss could be a result of major health problems.