Queen Elizabeth II [Photo: USA Today]
President Uhuru Kenyatta has joined other world leaders in mourning the death of Queen Elizabeth II who passed away on Thursday aged 96.
In his message of condolence to the Royal Family, President Uhuru mourned the queen as a towering global icon of selfless service to humanity.
“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was a towering icon of selfless service to humanity and a key figurehead of not only the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations where Kenya is a distinguished member but the entire world,” President Uhuru mourned.
He said the People and the Government of Kenya stands in solidarity with the Royal Family, the United Kingdom and the world in mourning the departed monarch.
The president then recalled Kenya’s close ties with Queen Elizabeth II noting that the longest serving monarch in British history took over from her father, King George VI, who died while she was on safari in Kenya.
Meanwhile, President-Elect William Ruto also joined the world in mourning Queen Elizabeth II.
Following the announcement of her death, Ruto took to his Twitter account to mourn the departed queen.
He described her leadership as admirable, noting that she steered the monarch’s evolution into a forum for effective multilateral engagement.
“The queen’s leadership of the Commonwealth for the past seven decades is admirable. She steered the institution’s evolution into a forum for effective multilateral engagement whose potential to drive tremendous socioeconomic progress remains incontestable and redounds to the Queen’s historic legacy,” said Ruto.
Meanwhile, the US president Joe Biden and the first lady Jill Biden said the Queen was more than a monarch who defined an era.
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez paid tribute to the Queen as a figure of global significance a witness and author of British and European history.
New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern said flags would fly at half-mast and arrangements would be made for a state memorial service.
Queen Elizabeth II – full name Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor is UK’s longest-serving monarch after ascending to the throne in 1952 aged 25 years.
Buckingham Palace says she died peacefully at her Scottish estate where she had spent much of the summer.
Her son King Charles III said the death of his beloved mother was a “moment of great sadness” for him and his family and that her loss would be “deeply felt” around the world.
According to Buckingham Palace, the King is expected to address the nation today.