Prince William has been defended by royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams after releasing a controversial statement regarding the ongoing war in Israel.
The Prince of Wales has been criticised for 'wading into politics' after issuing a statement detailing his stance on the Middle Eastern conflict.
In 2018, Prince William pledged to make peace in the Middle East his "lifelong project" after a historic trip to the region, becoming the first senior British royal to do so.
Ahead of his visit to the British Red Cross headquarters to hear more about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the Prince released a statement, expressing his "deep concern" regarding the conflict in Israel.
Richard Fitzwilliams says Prince William's statement was an 'impassioned plea'
GB News / PA
The future King called for an "end to the fighting" and claimed that "too many people have died" as a result of the October 7 attack by Hamas.
He added: "Sometimes it is only when faced with the sheer scale of human suffering that the importance of permanent peace is brought home."
Reacting to the Prince's statement, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams praised the royal for his "emotional and impassioned plea" for peace in the Middle East.
Fitzwilliams defended him against critics and claimed Prince William was taking a "humanitarian stance" as opposed to a "political" one.
Prince William visited the British Red Cross headquarters in London on Tuesday
PA
Fitzwilliams explained to GB News: "It has been carefully balanced around two engagements, one involving the Red Cross and the other a visit to a synagogue.
"There's no question that his language will resonate to the fact that he believes, which is obviously the case, that far too many have died."
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The royal commentator added that the statement appears to be "coordinated with Number 10" and believes the Prince of Wales would "not have spoken about it" if King Charles had not approved.
Fitzwilliams continued: "It's up to the Prince to articulate it at the moment, and this is undoubtedly it is a shock intervention. It is in uncharted territory.
"But he visited the area, he was the first royal to pay an official visit to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories in 2018.
"So it could be argued politically by mentioning and emphasising the terrible cost, but this is an emotional statement in that respect."
Richard Fitzwilliams says Prince William is 'not taking a political stance'
GB News
Fitzwilliams further defended Prince William by highlighting that the Royal Family are "not allowed" to become involved or air opinion on anything "party political".
He stated: "It could be argued that this is humanitarian and he isn't taking a political stance, because the argument has always been with the Royal Family that they mustn't go into party politics.
"It can't be anything to do with party politics, because they're symbolic of the nation and that is unwise."
