King hugs Second World War veteran, 105, at Windsor remembrance reception

The King and a 105-year-old Second World War veteran have shared a hug during a remembrance reception at Windsor Castle.

Yavar Abbas, who served as a combat cameraman in the British Army during the six-year-conflict, had already met Charles and the Queen at a service of remembrance in Staffordshire earlier this year.

His off-script address to Charles and Camilla, thanking them for attending the VJ Day event despite Charles’s ongoing cancer treatment, seemingly moved them to tears at the time.

Mr Abbas reunited with the royal couple on Tuesday night at the Berkshire royal residence, where 12 other Second World War veterans from the UK and Commonwealth who served in the Pacific and Indian Ocean were also honoured.

Mr Abbas kissed Camilla’s hand when she sat next to him for the group photo, and later stood up to greet the King – who was accompanied by the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Edinburgh, and the Duchess of Gloucester.

The two exchanged a few words before hugging, drawing moving reactions from the rest of the guests.

“I told him, ‘We can’t go on meeting like this’,” Mr Abbas told the PA news agency.

“I was very much looking forward to meeting him again.

“I have a lot of respect for His Majesty, not just as a monarch, but as a human being.

“It’s wonderful to meet him and to know that he is improving, because I had cancer and I got rid of it,” Mr Abbas added. “I’ve been rid of it for 15 years now.”

Originally from Lucknow in India, Mr Abbas was commissioned into the British Army in India in 1942 as a second lieutenant in the 11th Sikh Regiment.

He then trained as a combat cameraman and began documenting the war and its aftermath, from major battles in Burma to occupied Japan, including Hiroshima.

He went on to work as a filmmaker, and paid tribute to the journalists killed in Gaza amid the conflict with Israel.

“Whatever I did, it’s insignificant when I see what the men and women of Gaza have done for more than two years,” he said.

“They have been recording the genocide that has been visited upon them.”

When asked what message he wanted to pass down to future generations, he replied: “I am angry with the world and I am ashamed.

“I thought I fought a war to have a better world and I find that I am in a worse world than I was in at the time.”

“We are glorifying war,” he added. “At the drop of a hat, we begin a war.”

Charles, who is patron of the Royal British Legion, shared one last hug with Mr Abbas before he left the reception.

Britain’s head of state was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer early last year and is continuing with his regular treatment programme, believed to be a weekly session.

The Prime Minister Keir Starmer also attended the event and met veterans and their families.

Others present included Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, Defence Secretary John Healey, and actor Sir Mark Rylance.

The reception continued the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, which on August 15 marked the anniversary of the end of Second World War.

Much of the celebration in 1945 focused on VE (Victory in Europe) Day in May, with those who served in the Far East labelled The Forgotten Army.

Attendees were able to view photographic displays by the Royal British Legion and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission commemorating VE and VJ Day.

Before leaving the reception, Charles held the Commonwealth War Graves’ Torch for Peace, which was commissioned this year to symbolise future peace and honour the memory of all those who died in the world wars.