Charles Officially Announced as Britain's King at Royal Ceremony

King Charles III makes a personal declaration at the historic ceremony
King Charles III makes a personal declaration at the historic ceremony
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Charles Officially Announced as Britain's King at Royal Ceremony

King Charles III makes a personal declaration at the historic ceremony
King Charles III makes a personal declaration at the historic ceremony

King Charles III was officially announced as Britain’s monarch Saturday, in a ceremony broadcast live for the first time.

Charles automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, but the accession ceremony is a key constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country.

The ceremony at St. James’s Palace, a royal residence in London, was attended by the Accession Council, made up of senior politicians and officials who advise the monarch. They met without Charles, officially confirming his title, King Charles III. The king then joined them to make a series of oaths and declarations.

"My Mother’s reign was unequalled in its duration, its dedication and its devotion. Even as we grieve, we give thanks for this most faithful life," the king said in his personal declaration at the historic ceremony.

"I am deeply aware of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of Sovereignty which have now passed to me."

"In taking up these responsibilities, I shall strive to follow the inspiring example I have been set in upholding constitutional government and to seek the peace, harmony and prosperity of the peoples of these Islands and of the Commonwealth Realms and Territories throughout the world," he added.

It’s the first time the ceremony has been held since 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II took the throne.

Charles, 73, was accompanied at the ceremony by his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, and his eldest son Prince William. William is now heir to the throne and known by the title Charles long held, Prince of Wales.

Two days after the 96-year-old queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland following an unprecedented 70 years on the throne, people still came in their thousands to pay their respects outside Buckingham Palace in London. The scene was repeated at other royal residences across the UK and at British embassies around the world.

The monarch set the tone for his reign on Friday, vowing in a televised address to carry on the queen's “lifelong service,” with his own modernizing stamp.

Britain has declared a period of mourning until the state funeral for Elizabeth.

Palace officials said the funeral will take place on Sept. 19 at Westminster Abbey in London after the public gets an opportunity to pay their last respects to the monarch.

King Charles III declared Saturday that the day of his mother’s funeral will be a public holiday.



US Supreme Court Approves Deportation of Migrants to South Sudan

The US Supreme Court has allowed President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries that are not their own. Anna Moneymaker / GETTY IMAGES/AFP/File
The US Supreme Court has allowed President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries that are not their own. Anna Moneymaker / GETTY IMAGES/AFP/File
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US Supreme Court Approves Deportation of Migrants to South Sudan

The US Supreme Court has allowed President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries that are not their own. Anna Moneymaker / GETTY IMAGES/AFP/File
The US Supreme Court has allowed President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries that are not their own. Anna Moneymaker / GETTY IMAGES/AFP/File

The US Supreme Court on Thursday gave the green light for the Trump administration to deport a group of migrants stranded at an American military base in Djibouti to war-torn South Sudan.

The decision by the conservative-dominated top court comes 10 days after it cleared the way for the Trump administration to deport migrants to countries that are not their own.

The eight migrants were being flown to South Sudan from the US in May but ended up in Djibouti when a district court imposed a stay on third-country deportations.

The court said migrants were not being given a "meaningful opportunity" to contest removal.

On June 23, the Supreme Court lifted the stay imposed by District Judge Brian Murphy, clearing the way for third-country deportations.

But Murphy, an appointee of former president Joe Biden, said the case of the eight migrants who ended up in Djibouti was subject to a separate stay order he issued that had not been addressed by the Supreme Court.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court said its June 23 decision applied to both of the judge's orders.

Liberal justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the decision.

"What the Government wants to do, concretely, is send the eight noncitizens it illegally removed from the United States from Djibouti to South Sudan, where they will be turned over to the local authorities without regard for the likelihood that they will face torture or death," Sotomayor said.

"Today's order clarifies only one thing: Other litigants must follow the rules, but the administration has the Supreme Court on speed dial," she said.

The US authorities have said that the eight men -- two from Myanmar, two from Cuba, and one each from Vietnam, Laos, Mexico and South Sudan -- are convicted violent criminals.

The Trump administration has defended third-country deportations as necessary since the home nations of some of those who are targeted for removal sometimes refuse to accept them.

Donald Trump campaigned for president promising to expel millions of undocumented migrants from the United States, and he has taken a number of actions aimed at speeding up deportations since returning to the White House in January.