King Charles calls Herzog to express condolences over ‘barbaric’ Hamas attack
Palace says UK monarch has ‘asked to be kept actively updated’ on the ongoing situation, after speaking at length with Israeli president
Amy Spiro is a reporter and writer with The Times of Israel
The UK’s King Charles III called President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday to express his support for Israel following Hamas’s murderous assault on Israel this week.
According to Herzog’s office, the British monarch expressed his condolences and “deep shock” at the actions of the “barbaric” Hamas against Israeli citizens.
Herzog thanked Charles for his support of Israel, and said his comments were a “great comfort to the people of Israel and the entire Jewish people.”
The President’s Office said the pair spoke “at length” about the massacre.
In a statement on Wednesday, Buckingham Palace said King Charles was “appalled” by the attacks, and that “this is a situation His Majesty is extremely concerned about, and he has asked to be kept actively updated.”
In a separate statement, Prince William and Princess Kate said they were “profoundly distressed” by recent events and “utterly condemn” the “horrors” inflicted by Hamas on Israelis. The Prince and Princess of Wales noted that Israel will “exercise its right to self-defense” and that both Israeli and Palestinians will be engulfed in “grief, fear and anger” for some time.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has offered vociferous support for Israel since war broke out on Saturday.
On Sunday, Sunak slammed the “barbarity” of the “cowardly and depraved” Hamas attack and said the UK stands “unequivocally with Israel,” later offering to send aid to Jerusalem in a conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On Monday evening Sunak attended a prayer service at the Finchley United Synagogue in North London, and said his government’s support of Israel was “unequivocal… there are not two sides to these events. There is no question of balance. I stand with Israel. We stand with Israel. The United Kingdom stands with Israel.”
