Prince Charles to visit Israel in January
Charles, Prince of Wales, is scheduled to visit Israel next month on behalf of the British government for the first time, Clarence House, his official residence, announced on Wednesday.
The Prince of Wales plans to travel to Israel for the World Holocaust Forum at Yad Vashem, at the invitation of President Reuven Rivlin, on January 23, 2020. Some 40 world leaders, such as Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of Italy Sergio Mattarella and President of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen, are expected to attend.
Prince Charles plans to meet with Rivlin, and has a number of other engagements in Israel. He will also meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank.
Charles’s wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, plans to visit Auschwitz on Holocaust Memorial Day, January 27, to mark the 75th anniversary of the camp’s liberation.
The heir-apparent to the British throne has been to Jerusalem twice, on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, in 2016 and 1995, to attend the funerals of president Shimon Peres and prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, respectively.
The queen has never visited Israel. However, her husband, Prince Philip, has been to visit his mother’s grave on the Mount of Olives. His mother, Princess Alice of Greece, hid a Jewish woman named Rachel Cohen and two of her children during the Holocaust, and is recognized by Yad Vashem as a Righteous Gentile.
Last year, Prince William came to Israel, in the first-ever official visit to Israel by a member of the British Royal Family.
During his visit, the prince said “the ties between the United Kingdom and Israel have never been stronger,” and called them “two open societies that thrive on innovation, diversity, talent and excellence.”
William visited Yad Vashem and met with Holocaust survivors while in Israel.
He also came to Tel Aviv, where he saw some of the beaches and a display of Israeli hi-tech innovation.
Also Wednesday, the European Union announced that the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the president of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, will be at the event at Yad Vashem, along with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, who said earlier this month that she will be attending.
Israel and the US are working to coordinate a possible visit of Vice President Mike Pence to Jerusalem to participate in the forum, according to several sources in Washington.
While it’s likely that Pence will head the US delegation, the matter is still under consideration due to the timing. President Donald Trump will reportedly visit the World Economic Forum in Davos at the same time. And while it won’t be unprecedented, vice presidents usually don’t travel when the president is abroad.
The program at the event will include speeches by select heads of state, a Holocaust survivor and the event hosts, as well as a few short video clips and musical interludes performed by an orchestra accompanied by an international choir.
Dr. Moshe Kantor, founder and president of the World Holocaust Forum, said that this year’s forum will focus on the recent rise in antisemitism around the world, particularly violent antisemitic incidents.
“It is essential that there be a holistic road map to combat hate against Jews, which is at its highest levels since the Holocaust and is causing many Jewish communities to fear for their future,” said Kantor, who also serves as the president of the European Jewish Congress.
Omri Nahmias contributed to this report.