Kim Jong Un’s sister Kim Yo Jong could rule North Korea with an iron fist, experts have said amid reports that the country’s leader is in coma.

Since the reports on Kim’s deteriorating health started emerging, global experts have been discussing North Korea’s future and what could the regime change there mean for the world. The reports from South Korean intelligence agencies that Kim has handed over power to his sister have many of them worried.

“Given the reputation and history of the family, she would rule with an iron fist,” retired US Army Colonel David Maxwell told New York Post.

Sung-Yoon Lee, a professor at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, told The Post though Kim Jo Yong appears to be feminine, “the nature of the regime demands she be ruthless, especially in the first few years.”

The Hermit Kingdom is already known for implementing tough measures, and the violators are dealt with harshly.

A former BBC journalist, however, has suggested that Kim Jong Un may already be dead.

“I honestly believe he’s dead but you just can’t tell with that country. I could be in Pyongyang now and be none the wiser,” Roy Calley said in an interview to Express.co.uk.

Calley’s comments came after The Korean Herald quoted a former aide of South Korea’s late president Kim Dae-jung as saying, “I assess him (Kim Jong-un) to be in a coma, but his life has not ended.”

Seoul’s spy agency told lawmakers in a closed-door meeting about a ruling system that Kim seemed to have set up following which he shall share authority and responsibility with his most trusted aides, the South Korean daily reported. The National Intelligence Agency, however, said that the new system is not associated with any serious health issue, according to The Korean Herald.

Meanwhile, a Korean website Shinmoongo rubbished the reports as absurd and reminded of the time when Chang was “greatly embarrassed” after he raised the rumour of Kim’s death on April 23.

Following the reports, Calley said North Korea’s vague statements on Kim Jong-un point towards some major changes being brought in. “The fact that there is so much information/misinformation being released suggests there is something happening,” Express.co.uk quoted him as saying.

The last official reports from North Korea stated that Kim Jong Un has issued a dire warning for the country’s economy amid reports that he delegated some power to his sister, including responsibility for relations with the US.