King Charles III is set to focus on healthcare workers in his traditional Christmas message

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III and close members of the royal family attended Christmas Day services Wednesday at a church on Sandringham, the estate on the windswept North Sea coast that has served as a retreat for the royals for generations.

The monarch, who is suffering from cancer, waved to a large crowd of onlookers who traditionally gather outside the church in hopes of catching a glimpse of the royal parade before and after the service. Also in attendance was the Princess of Wales, the king’s daughter-in-law, who has been slowly returned to public duties after completing a course of chemotherapy.

In a reflection of the medical treatments they have received, Charles is expected to use his annual Christmas message broadcast later in the day to highlight health workers.

One familiar face was absent from the traditional scene outside St. Mary Magdalene Church: Prince Andrew. The king’s 64-year-old brother has retreated further into the shadows amid news that a Chinese businessman had been barred from the U.K. because of concerns he cultivated links with Andrew on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.

Andrew, once second in line to the British throne, has become a constant source of tabloid fodder because of his money woes and links to questionable characters, including the late American financier and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Even though Andrew had stepped back from public duties, he has continued to appear at family events and his absence from Sandringham suggests a further retreat from the public eye. The king has been under pressure to put more distance between Andrew and the royal family to avoid further embarrassment to the monarchy.

While Andrew has said he never discussed anything sensitive with the suspected Chinese spy and that he ceased contact with the man as soon as concerns were raised, the scandal raises further questions about his judgment and distracts from the work of the royal family, said Ed Owens, author of “After Elizabeth: Can the Monarchy Save Itself?’’

“The reason why this is a problem for the king is simply that the king is trying to rebrand the monarchy at the moment, centering its focus around him, but also around William, Catherine, what they are trying to do,” Owens said.

“It’s been a very difficult year for the monarchy, not least because of the two cancer diagnoses. And all the positive headlines that the king has been trying to generate of late, unfortunately, are overshadowed by the behavior, the reckless behavior, of his younger brother, who once again finds himself in the headlines.”

Charles' speech was recorded at Fitzrovia Chapel in London, which was part of the now-demolished Middlesex Hospital where his first wife, Diana, opened London’s first dedicated ward for those with AIDS. The building is richly decorated in a Gothic Revival style featuring more than 500 stars in a gold leaf ceiling.

“I assume that this space, being one of calm reflection, but also thinking about health, about care, about the medical profession, would make it a pretty apt choice,” said Carla Whalen, chair of the Fitzrovia Chapel Foundation’s board of trustees.

The broadcast is watched by millions of people in the United Kingdom and across the Commonwealth.

In keeping with the King’s desire to go into the community, he tasked the team organizing the broadcast with finding a site away from the royal estate. It's a rare occasion when the monarch's Christmas message is not recorded from one of the royal residences, notably Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle. The last time his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, recorded her message outside the royal estate was in 2006.

The criteria were clear: the building had to have health connections, a strong community presence and a place of solace and reflection for those with faith or none.

This is the king’s third Christmas speech since he ascended the throne after the queen died in September 2022. It is the first since he was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer in February.

His treatment forced him to step away from public appearances for two months. The 76-year-old monarch has slowly returned to public life in recent months and was in good spirits on a tour of Australia with his wife, Queen Camilla, in October.

It's been a difficult year for the royal family. A few weeks after Charles began treatment, the Princess of Wales announced her own cancer diagnosis, which sidelined her for much of the year as she underwent chemotherapy.

In a voiceover for the broadcast of her annual Christmas carol service at Westminster Abbey, which was recorded this month but broadcast on Tuesday evening, Kate reflected on the love and support that she has received.

“The Christmas story encourages us to consider the experiences and feelings of others," she said. “It also reflects our own vulnerabilities and reminds us of the importance of giving and receiving empathy, as well as just how much we need each other in spite of our differences."

Meanwhile, Camilla has had a lingering chest infection in recent weeks and hasn’t been able to attend certain events, including last month’s remembrance service for fallen service personnel.

Camilla walked alongside the king to the church with Prince William, Kate and their three children following. Charles' other siblings, Anne, the Princess Royal, and Edward, the Prince of Edinburgh, were also in the procession.

Charles has long taken refuge at Sandringham, one of the most famous stately homes in Britain. It sits on an 8,000-hectare (20,000-acre) estate in Norfolk on the eastern coast of England.

The private home of the last six British monarchs, Sandringham sits amid parkland, gardens and working farms about 110 miles (180 kilometers) north of London. It has been owned by the royal family since 1862, passing directly from one monarch to the next for more than 160 years.

Brian Melley contributed to this report.

Prince Edward, second left, and Princess Anne arrive for the the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Britain's King Charles IIIt, second left, with Queen Camilla, Kate Princess of Wales, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte, Prince William, Prince George and at right Mike Tindall arrive for the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Britain's King Charles III, right, with Queen Camilla, centre, and Kate Princess of Wales, left, Prince Louis, and Prince William walk as they go to the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Kate, Princess of Wales, left, with Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte, Prince William and Prince George arrive for the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024, at right, is Mike Tyndall husband of Zara Phillips. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Britain's King Charles III waves to the crowd as he and Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince George attend the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Britain's King Charles III speaks during the recording of his Christmas message at the Fitzrovia Chapel in central London, England, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP, Pool)

Britain's King Charles III speaks during the recording of his Christmas message at the Fitzrovia Chapel in central London, England, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP, Pool)

An Azerbaijani airliner with 67 people onboard crashed Wednesday near the Kazakhstani city of Aktau, leaving at least 32 survivors, according to officials. More than 30 people may be dead.

The plane was en route from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus.

Kazakhstan's Emergency Ministry said in a Telegram statement that those on board included five crew. A total of 29 survivors, including two children, have been hospitalized, the ministry told Russia's state news agency, RIA Novosti.

Another Russian news agency, Interfax quoted medical workers as saying that four bodies have been recovered and emergency workers at the scene as saying that both pilots, according to a preliminary assessment, died in the crash.

The Embraer 190 aircraft made an emergency landing 3 km from the city, Azerbaijan Airlines said earlier.

Kazakhstan’s Emergency Ministry initially said 25 people survived the crash, later revising that number to 27, 28, and then 29 as the search and rescue operation continued at the site of the crash, bringing the supposed death toll down.

The Prosecutor General's Office in Azerbaijan later reported that at least 32 people survived the crash, adding that the number wasn't final. Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that some of them were in critical condition.

The number of survivors could mean that over 30 people may be dead.

According to Kazakhstani officials, those aboard the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian nationals, six Kazakhstani and three Kyrgyzstani citizens, it said.

RIA Novosti quoted Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, as saying that preliminary information showed that the pilot had chosen to divert to Kazakhstan's Aktau after a bird strike on the aircraft led to “an emergency situation on board”.

Mobile phone footage circulating online appeared to show the aircraft making a steep descent before smashing into the ground in a fireball. Other footage showed part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rest of the aircraft, lying upside in the grass. The footage corresponded to the plane’s colors and its registration number.

Some of the videos posted on social media showed survivors dragging fellow passengers away from the wreckage of the plane.

Flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24.com showed the aircraft making what appeared to be a figure-right once nearing the airport in Aktau, its altitude moving up and down substantially over the last minutes of the flight before impacting the ground.

FlightRadar24 separately said in an online post that the aircraft had faced “strong GPS jamming” which “ made the aircraft transmit bad ADS-B data”, referring to the information that allows flight-tracking websites to follow planes in flight. Russia has been blamed in the past for jamming GPS transmissions in the wider region.

In a statement, Azerbaijan Airlines said it would keep members of the public updated and changed its social media banners to solid black.

Azerbaijan’s state news agency, Azertac, said that an official delegation consisting of Azerbaijan’s emergency situations minister, the country’s deputy general prosecutor, and the vice president of Azerbaijan Airlines had been dispatched to Aktau to conduct an “on-site investigation”.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who had been traveling to Russia, returned to Azerbaijan on hearing news of the crash, the president’s press service said. Aliyev was due to attend an informal meeting of leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States, a bloc of former Soviet countries founded after the collapse of the Soviet Union, in St. Petersburg.

Aliyev expressed his condolences to the families of the victims in a statement on social media. “It is with deep sadness that I express my condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to those injured,” he wrote.

Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to Aliyev on the phone and expressed his condolences, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Speaking at the CIS meeting in St. Petersburg, Putin also said that Russia's Emergency Ministry sent a plane with equipment and medical workers to Kazakhstan to assist with the aftermath of the crash.

Kazakhstani, Azerbaijani and Russian authorities said they were investigating the crash. Embraer told The Associated Press in a statement that the company is “ready to assist all relevant authorities."

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Azamat Sarsenbayev)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Azamat Sarsenbayev)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Azamat Sarsenbayev)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Azamat Sarsenbayev)

In this photo taken from a video released by the administration of Mangystau region, the wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lies on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (The Administration of Mangystau Region via AP)

In this photo taken from a video released by the administration of Mangystau region, the wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lies on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (The Administration of Mangystau Region via AP)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo)

The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024. (AP Photo)