News Desk :
Condolences poured in from around the world on Friday after the death of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, who became a global icon of calmness and fortitude through decades of political upheaval and social changes at home and abroad.
Elizabeth, who had been on the throne since 1952, when the nation was still rebuilding from the destruction of World War II, died Thursday afternoon (UK time) at age 96 at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland.
Global leaders paid tributes to Queen Elizabeth II as world mourns her death. Here are some reactions to her death:
US President Joe Biden was informed of her death by senior advisers during a meeting in the Oval Office.
Elizabeth, who the White House said had met with 14 American presidents, “was a stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States,” he and first lady Jill Biden said in a statement, saying “she defined an era.”
They later went to the British Embassy in Washington to offer condolences.
Biden wrote a message in the condolence book and paid respects to the Queen of the United Kingdom. “We mourn for all of you. She was a great lady, I’m so delighted I got to meet her,” Biden said.
He also ordered flags at the White House and government buildings to be flown at half-staff until the queen’s funeral. France, Britain’s historic rival and contemporary ally, honored Elizabeth with flags at the presidential palace and public buildings ordered lowered to half-staff Friday.
President Emmanuel Macron hailed her “immutable moral authority” and her intimate knowledge of French.
He said no other foreign sovereign had visited the presidential palace more often than Elizabeth, who knew all eight presidents of contemporary France.
“The woman who stood alongside the giants of the 20th century on the path of history has left to join them,” he said in a statement, sharing condolences to Britain from the French Republic and the French people.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told reporters she was awoken a little before 5am by a police officer shining a torch into her bedroom to tell her the news of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Under New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements, the queen was also New Zealand’s monarch and head of state. “The last days of the queen’s life captures who she was in so many ways,” Ardern said. Ardern said the queen was an extraordinary woman who she’d remember for her laughter. Ardern said that like many other people, she was feeling not only deep sadness but also deep gratitude.
Ardern said New Zealand had moved into a period of official mourning and would hold a state memorial service after the official funeral in Britain.
In his condolence message, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said,”Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be remembered as a stalwart of our times. She provided inspiring leadership to her nation and people. She personified dignity and decency in public life. Pained by her demise. My thoughts are with her family and people of UK in this sad hour.”
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari expressed immense sadness over the death of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. “Her late Majesty was the only British sovereign known to 90 per cent of our population,” the Nigerian leader said, describing the late queen’s reign as unique and wonderful.
“The story of modern Nigeria will never be complete without a chapter on Queen Elizabeth ll, a towering global personality and an outstanding leader. She dedicated her life to making her nation, the Commonwealth and the entire world a better place,” Buhari added.
Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro issued a decree for three days of national mourning in the South American nation for the death of Queen Elizabeth II. He also said on Twitter, “Elizabeth wasn’t the queen for the British only; she was a queen for all of us.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the death of Queen Elizabeth II is a time of mourning for the people in Britain, across the Commonwealth and around the world.
In a statement, he said she is the only reigning monarch most Australians have known and the only one to ever visit their country. “And over the course of a remarkable seven decades, Her Majesty was a rare and reassuring constant amidst rapid change. Through the noise and turbulence of the years, she embodied and exhibited a timeless decency and an enduring calm,” he said.
The British monarch is Australia’s official head of state, although these days the role is considered primarily ceremonial.
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to King Charles III.
“For many decades, Elizabeth II rightfully enjoyed the love and respect of her subjects, as well as authority on the world stage. I wish you courage and perseverance in the face of this heavy, irreparable loss,” Putin wrote.
Elizabeth was mourned across the 54-nation Commonwealth, a group built around Britain and its former colonies.
“For most Canadians, we have known no other sovereign,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. He called her “a constant presence in our lives – and her service to Canadians will forever remain an important part of our country’s history.”
Elizabeth, who is Canada’s head of state, visited the country 22 times as monarch.
The Queen’s death comes as a growing number of British territories in the Caribbean seek to replace the monarch with their own heads of state amid demands that Britain apologise for its colonial-era abuses and award its former colonies slavery reparations.
Still, Caribbean leaders from Jamaica to Bermuda and beyond mourned her death.
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said that for many years she visited the island every decade.
“Undoubtedly, she formed a special bond with the people of Jamaica,” he said. “We are saddened that we will not see her light again, but we will remember her historic reign.”
Bermuda Premier David Burt noted that her reign “has spanned decades of such immense change for the United Kingdom and the world”.
The new British prime minister, Liz Truss, on her third day on the job, stepped to a podium at 10 Downing St. and solemnly lionized the queen as the “rock upon which modern Britain was built.”
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres referred to the long period of decolonization in Asia and Africa and cited Elizabeth’s role then as “a reassuring presence throughout decades of sweeping change.” Guterres noted that the British monarch visited the U.N. headquarters in New York on two occasions, 50 years apart.
And from a fortified bunker in his war-ravaged country, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted that the queen’s death marked “irreparable loss.”
Pope Francis paid “tribute to queen’s life of unstinting service to the good of the nation and the Commonwealth.” He also said prayers for King Charles, invoking “an abundance of divine blessings” to guide him in his new role.
Meanwhile, police in Scotland removed barriers blocking the gates to Balmoral Castle to allow the public to lay flowers for Queen Elizabeth II. The area had been blocked off as members of the royal family arrived earlier Thursday.
In London, the wrought iron gates at Buckingham Palace were brightened by dozens of colourful bouquets laid by mourners. Several sporting events in Britain were called off as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth.
