Kim Jong Un Calls Coronavirus Outbreak a 'Great Shock'

The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, has termed the coronavirus outbreak in the country as a 'great shock.' According to the Korean Central News Agency on Saturday, doctors have recorded 21 new deaths from COVID-19, bringing the total number of fatalities to 27.

On Saturday morning, the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, which discussed measures to combat the coronavirus.

"The spread of the malignant virus can be called a great shock since the establishment of the republic," said the DPRK leader, adding that it is possible to overcome this crisis by strengthening anti-epidemic efforts and maintaining strict quarantine measures.

On Thursday, the Korean Central News Agency reported that for the first time, the omicron BA.2 variant of the coronavirus has been detected in the territory of the people's republic.