LONDON: Queen Elizabeth II has been advised to rest for at least the next two weeks, accepting doctors’ advice to cut back on her busy schedule, Buckingham Palace said Friday.
The 95-year-old monarch can continue to undertake light, desk-based duties during this time — including some virtual audiences. But she will be unable to travel to the Festival of Remembrance on Saturday, Nov. 13.
“However, it remains The Queen’s firm intention to be present for the National Service of Remembrance on Remembrance Sunday, on 14th November,’’ the palace said, noting a major event on the monarch’s annual calendar.
The decision comes just days after Elizabeth canceled her planned appearance at the UN climate conference in Glasgow — a move that dashed the hopes of Britain’s Conservative government which is anxious to show the importance of the session to the fate of the planet. The climate conference runs from Oct. 31 to Nov. 12 and her attendance was meant to kick it off in style and splendor.
The news came after the sovereign held virtual audiences Tuesday at Windsor Castle — the first since revelations that her doctors ordered her to rest last week. The sovereign greeted the ambassadors from South Korea and Switzerland during her first technology-aided appearance since she was driven to London’s King Edward VII’s Hospital on Oct. 20 for “preliminary investigations.” She returned to her Windsor Castle home at lunchtime the next day and has been taking on light duties since.
The queen underwent the medical tests after she canceled a scheduled trip to mark 100 years since the creation of Northern Ireland, and the palace said she had “reluctantly” accepted advice to rest for a few days. The matter was not related to COVID-19.
Queen Elizabeth II advised to rest for 2 weeks
https://arab.news/4856d
Queen Elizabeth II advised to rest for 2 weeks
- The 95-year-old monarch can continue to undertake light, desk-based duties during this time including some virtual audiences
- Decision comes just days after Elizabeth canceled her planned appearance at the U.N. climate conference
California joins UN health network following US departure from WHO
- California Governor Gavin Newsom decried the United States’ move on Friday, calling it a “reckless decision” that will hurt many people
CALIFORNIA: California said on Friday it will become the first US state to join the World Health Organization’s global outbreak response network following the Trump administration’s decision to pull Washington out of the WHO.
The network, comprised of more than 360 technical institutions, responds to public health events with the deployment of staff and resources to affected countries. It has tackled major public health events, including COVID-19. The state’s decision to join the network comes more than a year after US President Donald Trump gave notice that Washington would depart from the WHO. On Thursday, it officially withdrew from the agency, saying its decision reflected failures in the UN health agency’s management of the pandemic.
California Governor Gavin Newsom decried the United States’ move on Friday, calling it a “reckless decision” that will hurt many people.
“California will not bear witness to the chaos this decision will bring,” Newsom said in a statement. “We will continue to foster partnerships across the globe and remain at the forefront of public health preparedness, including through our membership as the only state in WHO’s Global Outbreak Alert & Response Network.”
The governor’s office said he met with the WHO’s Director General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week, where they discussed collaborating to detect and respond to emerging public health threats.
The WHO did not immediately respond when reached for comment.
