South Korea investigating reports Kim Jong Un is in 'grave danger' following surgery

U.S. intelligence agencies have received information that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in "grave danger" following surgery, a U.S. official with knowledge of the matter told CNN on Monday night.

He was last spotted on April 11 at a government meeting, and was absent at a birthday celebration on April 15 for his late grandfather, state founder Kim Il Sung. Rumors swirled in 2014, when Kim Jong Un was briefly out of the public eye. Upon his return, he was seen using a cane, and South Korea intelligence determined that he had a cyst taken off his ankle, CNN reports.

Daily NK, a Seoul-based nonprofit that monitors North Korea, has reported that Kim is recovering from heart surgery, and his condition is improving. Officials with South Korea's Unification Ministry and National Intelligence Service told The Associated Press they were unable to immediately confirm the CNN or Daily NK reports, and are investigating both.

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