Britain’s King Charles III met with Turkish and Syrian communities in London on Tuesday, showing support to those sending aid to their homeland and expressing sorrow for those affected by last week’s devastating earthquake.
Charles appeared emotional as he visited a temporary “Syria House” set up in central London’s Trafalgar Square for the Syrian community in the UK to organize vigils and pay their respects to lost relatives.
The monarch heard from those grieving for their families back home, including Salah Al-Asmar, who told the king he lost his parents, brother and other relatives to the earthquake in Antakya, Turkey.
“For seven days, my family were under the rubble. There was no rescue team. No one could support them in this moment. I haven’t been able to sleep for days,” Al-Asmar said after meeting with Charles.
“The king was showing his support and was saying, ‘I can’t imagine how hard it has been for you’,” said Yazan Douedari, who also attended the event.
Earlier Tuesday, Charles and Umit Yalcin, Turkey’s ambassador to Britain, visited a west London charity organizing shipments of tents, blankets, winter clothes and toiletries to help those left homeless by the quake in Turkey.
“He said he was deeply sorry, deeply sad, and he will pray for Turkey, for Syria and the people under that devastating earthquake,” Yalcin told reporters.
Charles and his wife, Camilla, the queen consort, have donated to an emergency earthquake appeal jointly organized by British aid groups that has raised more than 74 million pounds ($90 million) in the past few days.
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