North Korea said on Friday that the latest fever cases detected in its border region with China were tested to be influenza, not coronavirus infections as initially feared.
The report by North Korea’s Central News Agency came a day after North Korea said it locked down unspecified areas in Ryanggang province after four people came down with suspected COVID-19 fever.
North Korea has had no confirmed coronavirus cases since August 10, when leader Kim Jong Un declared a widely disputed victory over the virus, just three months after the country acknowledged an omicron outbreak.
KCNA said diagnostic testing of samples, the nature of symptoms and information obtained from contract tracing led health care workers to conclude the fevers were caused by influenza. Since then, patients have returned to average temperatures, he said.
North Korean authorities lifted the lockdown but urged residents to remain vigilant by wearing masks and reporting fever symptoms to health authorities immediately.
While Kim claimed that the country’s success against the virus would be recognized as a global health miracle, experts believe North Korea has manipulated disclosures on its outbreak to help him maintain absolute control. Experts say that the victory statement signals Kim’s aim to move to other priorities, including a possible nuclear test.
After admitting to a coronavirus outbreak in May, North Korea reported about 4.8 million “fever cases” across its mostly unvaccinated population of 26 million but only identified a fraction of them as COVID-19. Experts say the country’s official death toll of 74 is abnormally small, considering the country’s lack of public health tools.
North Korea dubiously insists that rival South Korea was responsible for its COVID-19 outbreak and has warned of “deadly” retaliation, saying that the virus was transported by anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets and other materials flown across the border by balloons launched by South Korean civilian activists. South Korea has dismissed such claims as unscientific and “ridiculous.”