LONDON: Britain’s King Charles III called for “compassion and reconciliation” at a time of “division” across the world in his Christmas Day message Thursday. The 77-year-old monarch said he found it “enormously encouraging” how people of different faiths had a “shared longing for peace.” Charles praised individuals who risked their lives to save others in situations of violence, including those caught up in the killings at a Jewish event at Bondi Beach in Australia this month.

Monarch urges people to draw strength from community diversity after a year marked by division and violence

Charles also celebrated the “Second World War values of courage and sacrifice” in his annual festive address to the nation