UK's Queen to miss Remembrance event

LONDON - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II will miss Sunday's Remembrance service, which was supposed to be her first public appearance since resting on medical advice, due to a "sprained back", Buckingham Palace said.

"The Queen, having sprained her back, has decided this morning with great regret that she will not be able to attend today's Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph," the palace said in a statement.

"Her Majesty is disappointed that she will miss the service."

Her son Prince Charles will lay a wreath on her behalf, as in previous years.

The 95-year-old was due to view the annual service in central London from a balcony, as she has done since 2017, when she handed over some of her duties to younger members of the family.

The service honoring fallen troops is close to the monarch's heart, and her absence will deepen concerns over her health after she stepped back from duties on medical advice and spent a night in hospital undergoing unspecified tests at the end of last month.

She then resumed "light duties", but pulled out of a scheduled attendance at the UN climate change summit in Glasgow after being advised to rest.

Charles and her grandson Prince William instead represented the family, making a series of speeches to delegates.

A two-day trip to Northern Ireland was also shelved.

- Agencies via Xinhua