WELLINGTON: Britain's Prince William met survivors of a deadly shooting at two mosques in Christchurch, including a five-year-old girl recovering in hospital, during a two-day visit to New Zealand.
William, the Duke of Cambridge, was making the trip on behalf of his 93-year-old grandmother Queen Elizabeth, New Zealand's head of state, following a request from Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
He arrived in Christchurch on Thursday afternoon and on Friday visited Christchurch Hospital to meet survivors recovering from injuries from the attacks, before he was set to visit the two mosques where a gunman killed 50 worshippers on March 15. He had started the visit on Thursday in the country's largest city of Auckland where he attended an ANZAC memorial service. He later visited Starship Children's Hospital with Ardern to meet five-year-old Alen Alsati, who had recently woken up from a coma after she and her father were injured in the attacks.
Photos and a video posted on Kensington Palace's Twitter account showed Prince William sitting on the side of the child's hospital bed, surrounded by her family and Ardern.
The girl asked if he had a daughter.
"Yes, she's called Charlotte ... she's about the same age as you," Prince William replied.
Later in the evening, the Prince went to Christchurch's justice centre to meet first responders to the mosque shootings, including ambulance staff.
"You did an incredible job on a very bad day," he said, according to Kensington Palace's Twitter account.
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