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(30 Oct 1994) Prince Philip has become the first member of the British royal family to visit Israel since the creation of the Jewish state. The husband of Queen Elizabeth is on a private visit to receive an award on behalf of his mother. He'll also meet members of the Jewish family she saved during the Second World War. Although this is a first for the British royal family, Prince Philip's visit is a private affair. He began by visiting the city of Ramle where he laid a wreath at the Commonwealth war graves cemetary and attended a memorial service for British troops. Tomorrow, (Monday) the Duke of Edinburgh will take part in a ceremony honouring his mother, the late Princess Alice of Greece at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial. She will officially join the ranks of the Righteous Among Nations, those honoured for saving Jews. The princess hid a Jewish family in her palace in Athens during World War Two. SOUNDBITE: Princess Alice did risk her position by sheltering Jews in her palace for over a year. For this reason we decided to nominate Princess Alice as a righteous among the nation. SUPER CAPTION: Representative of Yad Yashem, Holocaust Memorial. Prince Philip will make his first visit to the crypt containing his mother's coffin at the church of St Mary Magdalene on the Mount of Olives, East Jerusalem. He'll also meet members of the Cohen family hidden by his mother for 13 months. Princess Alice joins 12,000 others recognized as Righteous Gentiles for saving Jews. She became deeply religious in later life, and became a nun in the Greek Orthodox Church. The Duke of Edinburgh is also due to meet Israel's president, as well as leading Palestinians during his visit. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive:
