SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has regained weight and appears to have obesity-related health problems such as high blood pressure and diabetes, and his officials are looking for new medicines abroad to treat them, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers on Monday.
The 40-year-old Kim, known for heavy drinking and smoking, comes from a family with a history of heart problems.
Since the end of the Cold War, the High North has been defined by the idea of “Arctic exceptionalism,” the common understanding that the region had unwritten rules, beliefs, and history that protected it from great-power rivalry. Under this shield, China emerged in recent years as a new power in the European Arctic through increased trade, investments, and scientific cooperation.
Venezuela’s political opposition vehemently rejected the electoral authority’s ruling that Nicolás Maduro was reelected as the nation’s president, calling on the military to intervene. The U. S. and some Latin American neighbors also raised concerns about the official result.
Maduro won Sunday’s election with 51.2% of the vote, compared with 44.2% for rival Edmundo González, the electoral center said.
North Korea may be considering a nuclear test near the time the U. S. presidential election is held to raise its profile, South Korea’s defense minister said, as Kim Jong Un rolls out new warheads capable of striking the U. S. and its allies in Asia.
Seoul will reach a deal with Japan and the U.
Anticipation was high ahead of The National Wax Museum in Dublin unveiling a figure of Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor on Thursday. The waxwork had been made to honor the celebrated musician, who died aged 56 on July 26, 2023. But the plan to mark the one-year anniversary of her death fell flat following a largely unenthusiastic response to the waxwork
The criticism was led by the singer’s brother, John O’Connor, who voiced his disappointment of the wax figure, which depicted the Dublin-born talent dressed in all black and holding a microphone.
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Calling into RTÉ Radio’s Liveline on Friday, John said he “didn’t think it looked like her [Sinéad] at all.” Elaborating further during his conversation with radio host Joe Duffy, the singer’s brother continued: “I was shocked, I thought it looked [like] something between a mannequin and something out of the Thunderbirds.
The Paris Summer Olympics opening ceremony has already garnered much attention, from a freshly-decapitated Marie Antoinette—who was still singing—to an emotional performance by Celine Dion. Add in the rain pouring down on the City of Lights, and the event was by most accounts unconventional.
Yet, there was another aspect of the opening ceremony that caught the attention of viewers, with many heading to social media to point it out.