Kim Jong-un Dismisses Senior Officials Over Coronavirus Incident Threatening National Safety
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has dismissed several high-ranking party officials after a “grave” incident related to the coronavirus, which he claims has put the safety of the country and its people at risk. Kim’s remarks were made during a meeting of the ruling party’s politburo, where he criticized the failure of officials to implement important decisions to support the ongoing anti-epidemic efforts in light of the global health crisis.
While the specific details of the incident were not disclosed by state media, it has fueled speculation that Covid-19 may have finally breached North Korea’s strict defenses. The country had closed its borders with China and Russia early in the pandemic, ceased international air travel, and implemented severe domestic travel restrictions. Despite this, North Korea had repeatedly stated to the World Health Organization that it had not detected a single case of Covid-19, after testing over 30,000 people.
Experts, however, have expressed doubts about the accuracy of these claims, highlighting the nation’s limited healthcare resources, which would struggle to manage an outbreak.
