In 2018, Prince William visited Israel and Gaza and met with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other local leaders. During the five-day trip, William’s staff briefed the British press that William “pledged to make Middle East peace his lifelong project.” He promptly forgot about it and did absolutely f–k all. Then, last fall, he and Kate issued a carefully-worded statement following the October 7th Hamas terrorist attack. And since then… nothing. No visits to synagogues or mosques, no follow-up statements of concern. Don’t get me wrong, this is one of the most sensitive political hot potatoes ever, and I completely understand why Downing Street would tell a bald, insensitive, charisma-vacuum to simply shut up and not blunder into this situation whatsoever. William couldn’t even attend the BAFTAs and chat with actors without his ghastly gaffes making international news. So… it’s interesting that Kensington Palace thinks that William is capable of threading this particular needle right now.
The Prince of Wales will recognise the scale of “human suffering” caused by the war in Gaza in his first public comments on the conflict since it began last October. Prince William, 41, expressed “profound concern” about the ongoing violence in the Middle East ahead of an engagement on Tuesday, in which he will meet aid workers involved with the humanitarian effort in the enclave.
The Prince will be briefed on the latest developments in Gaza and how charities are supporting those on the ground. He has been “closely following” the Gaza conflict since the Hamas terror attacks in Israel on Oct 7, the Telegraph understands.
He will join a synagogue discussion with young campaigners against hatred next week, in the wake of a sharp rise in anti-Semitism caused by the conflict. The Prince is keen to use his platform to highlight the plight of millions of innocent civilians on both sides. The two engagements will be among the first he has conducted since returning from looking after his wife as she recovered from abdominal surgery, and their three children.
A Kensington Palace spokesperson said: “The Prince and Princess were profoundly concerned by events that unfolded in late 2023 and continue to hold all the victims, their family and friends in their hearts and minds. Their Royal Highnesses continue to share in the hope of a better future for all those affected.”
All of the British papers got the same statement and the same briefing, likely from William’s brand-new private secretary Ian Patrick. Patrick comes from the diplomatic world, and it looked like Patrick was basically assigned to William to help tutor this dumbass on How To Be A Soft Power Diplomat 101. Except William hates to read, he surrounds himself with incompetent staffers who fail to prepare him for events and he cannot be trusted in these kinds of sensitive situations. Weirdly, this whole “visiting a synagogue and speaking with anti-hate campaigners” is exactly the kind of thing King Charles would have done and has done a million times. Say what you will about Charles, but he’s always been very good in inclusive multi-faith conversations. His heir, not so much. Oh, William just issued this statement ahead of his events today:
“I remain deeply concerned about the terrible human cost of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack on 7 October,” he said. “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. Sometimes it is only when faced with the sheer scale of human suffering that the importance of permanent peace is brought home. Even in the darkest hour, we must not succumb to the counsel of despair.”
This is 100% the new guy, right? Worse yet, I absolutely believe that William is doing this last-minute, without guidance and approval from Downing Street or the Foreign Office. It will be interesting to see what happens.
A statement from The Prince of Wales pic.twitter.com/LV2jMx75DC
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) February 20, 2024
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.