King Charles has returned to London for his first in-person engagement since his cancer diagnosis.
The monarch is set to meet with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak today for their first face-to-face audience of the year.
After the King’s cancer diagnosis, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would be stepping back from public facing duties but last night he quietly travelled to London to conduct a royal engagement.
The monarch has been staying in Sandringham, Norfolk where he was recovering from his second round of cancer treatment.
King Charles set for first in-person engagement since cancer diagnosis
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On Tuesday night the King flew from Sandringham, his home in Norfolk, to Windsor where he is expected to meet with Sunak, according to The Telegraph.
Since the announcement of the King’s cancer diagnosis on February 5, the monarch and Sunak have been holding their weekly meetings over the telephone instead of in-person.
On February 7, Downing Street made an unusual move by confirming that the PM would be holding his weekly audience with the monarch over the phone.
Sunak’s official spokesperson said: “We don’t in general and we are not going to get into the habit of commenting on the PM’s conversations with the King.
Rishi Sunak will have an in-person audience with the King today
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“But we have agreed with the Palace in this specific instance to confirm that they will be speaking on the phone later.”
Yesterday, the Prime Minister supported Prince William’s intervention as he voiced his concerns about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza through a public statement.
In the statement, William said: “I remain deeply concerned about the terrible human cost of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack on 7 October. Too many have been killed.
“I, like so many others, want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible. There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support to Gaza. It’s critical that aid gets in and the hostages are released.”
King Charles has been holding his audiences with Rishi Sunak over the phone following his diagnosis
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Charles has been resting at his home in Norfolk following a second round of cancer treatement
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Buckingham Palace declined to comment on whether the King supported his son’s stance on the war in the Middle East.
However, the King has spoken out before about the “heartbreaking loss of life” in Israel and Gaza and called for religious tolerance.
Similarly in his Christmas Day speech, the King spoke of "universal" values between religions in a time of "increasingly tragic conflict around the world."
William's latest statement was carefully worded as the prince looks to avoid being accused of being pulled into politics.