The King, 75, met the families of the three murdered girls at Clarence House in London on Wednesday, Aug. 21
King Charles met with the families of the three young girls who died at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29.
The King, 75, hosted the families at his London residence, Clarence House, on Wednesday, Aug. 21. It was a private event, and Buckingham Palace has not released any more details of the meeting.
It followed King Charles’ visit to Southport, near Liverpool, where the attack happened, the previous day.
Three girls — Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9 — died in the attack. Several other children were also injured, as were two adults who intervened.
A teenage boy, who was 17 at the time, has been charged with their murders. After the arrest was made, disturbances and riots, much of it fueled by misinformation spread online, broke out at Southport, where the mosque came under attack, and in other cities around England.
On Aug. 20, King Charles met community leaders and some of those who were caught up in the aftermath of the attack, and the members of the emergency services who were called to cope with both the initial tragedy and the violent disturbances that followed it.
The monarch also spent time with local faith leaders including the imam of Southport’s mosque.
“He was referring to the community and how terrifying it must have been for us. How scary and terrifying it must have been for us and our mosque and our community,” Ibrahim Hussein said afterward, reported The Telegraph.
“For His Majesty to take time from his heavy schedule and visit a small town such as this means a lot to us.”
John Hayes, a 63-year-old businessman who was among the first people on the scene of the July 29 stabbings and who was injured in the attack, told BBC News that Charles’ visit was a “lift” for those who met him.
“It was lovely to meet him. I found him quite engaging, quite easy to talk to,” Hayes said, noting that it was “very kind” of the monarch to travel from his traditional holiday in Scotland for the outing. The day prior on Aug. 19, King Charles was officially welcomed to Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands, where the royals gather in the summer.
Shortly after the tragic events of July. 29, the King, along with Kate Middleton and Prince William, issued statements expressing their sadness and shock.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, both 42, wrote on social media, “As parents, we cannot begin to imagine what the families, friends and loved ones of those killed and injured in Southport today are going through. We send our love, thoughts and prayers to all those involved in this horrid and heinous attack.”
They added, “Thank you also to the emergency responders who, despite being met with the most horrific scenes, demonstrated compassion and professionalism when your community needed you most.”