Is a North Korean official alive dead or alive? The answer to that seldom matters in the world of DPRK news coverage. Once a senior figure is reported executed or purged by one outlet, the rest of the pack covers regardless.

Now it’s Ri Yong Ho’s turn, North Korea’s former foreign minister. 

The Japanese outlet Yomiuri Shimbun, citing sources familiar with the country’s internal affairs, reported Wednesday that Ri was executed sometime in 2022 — alongside a handful of other senior foreign ministry officials — allegedly in connection with their previous work at the DPRK Embassy in London.

Over