Duke of Cambridge makes historic Israel trip
The Duke of Cambridge has become the first member of the British royal family to make an official visit to Israel after he arrived in Tel Aviv as part of five-day tour of the Middle East.
The Queen’s 36-year-old grandson will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as visiting Ramallah in the West Bank to talk with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, where he will attend an event dealing with the issues facing refugee communities.
Other highlights of his visit will include laying a commemorative wreath at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial center in Jerusalem, and visiting the grave of his great-grandmother, Princess Alice of Greece, the mother of the Duke of Edinburgh, in the Russian Orthodox Church of St Mary Magdalene on the Mount of Olives.
Princess Alice died at Buckingham Palace in London in 1969 and for many years her remains were kept at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, before her dying wish was fulfilled in 1988 when she was buried on the mount near her Aunt Elizabeth, a member of Russia’s former royal family.
In 1994 the Duke of Edinburgh visited Princess Alice’s grave, but it was as part of a ceremony to commemorate her work of saving Greek Jews during World War II, rather than in an official visit capacity, as Prince William’s visit will be.
The royal trip comes at a time of national celebration and increased political turmoil in Israel.
On May 14 the state of Israel celebrated the 70th anniversary of its foundation, an event which was also marked by the highly contentious move of the US embassy from the capital Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a decision which sparked international criticism and widespread protests among Palestinians.
Dozens of people were killed in the ensuing violence, and shortly afterward the Argentina soccer team pulled out of a friendly match they were scheduled to play against Israel in Jerusalem.
Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain told ESPN that “Health and common sense come first. We felt that it wasn’t right to go,” but Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that the team had given in to threats and it was “too bad” that the team did not “withstand the pressure of the Israeli-hating inciters”.