New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told reporters she was awoken a little before 5 am by a police officer shining a torch into her bedroom to tell her the news of Queen Elizabeth II's death.
Under New Zealand's constitutional arrangements, the queen was also New Zealand's monarch and head of state.
“The last days of the queen's life captures who she was in so many ways,” Ardern said. “Working until the very end on behalf of the people she loved.”
Ardern said the queen was an extraordinary woman who she'd remember for her laughter. Ardern said that like many other people, she was feeling not only deep sadness but also deep gratitude.
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“Here is a woman who gave her life, utterly, to the service of others. And regardless of what anyone thinks of the role of monarchies around the world, there is undeniably, I think here, a display of someone who gave everything on behalf of her people, and her people included the people of Aotearoa New Zealand.”
Ardern said New Zealand had moved into a period of official mourning, and would hold a state memorial service after the official funeral in Britain.
President Muhammadu Buhari expressed “immense sadness” over the death of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.
“Her late Majesty was the only British sovereign known to 90 per cent of our population,” the Nigerian leader said, describing the late queen's reign as “unique and wonderful.”
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“The story of modern Nigeria will never be complete without a chapter on Queen Elizabeth ll, a towering global personality and an outstanding leader. She dedicated her life to making her nation, the Commonwealth and the entire world a better place,” Buhari added.
Nigeria gained independence from the British in 1960, four years after the late queen's official visit to the West African nation. When Elizabeth last visited in 2003, she spoke of Nigeria's critical role in the Commonwealth and applauded the country for its “leading part in the new partnership for Africa's development.”
Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro issued a decree for three days of national mourning in the South American nation for the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
"On this sad date for the world, we decree three days of official mourning and invite all the Brazilian people to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II.", Bolsonaro tweeted
He also said on Twitter that Elizabeth “wasn't the queen for the British only; she was a queen for all of us.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the death of Queen Elizabeth II is a time of mourning for the people in Britain, across the Commonwealth and around the world.
In a statement, he said she is the only reigning monarch most Australians have known and the only one to ever to visit their country.
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“And over the course of a remarkable seven decades, Her Majesty was a rare and reassuring constant amidst rapid change,” he said. “Through the noise and turbulence of the years, she embodied and exhibited a timeless decency and an enduring calm.”
The British monarch is Australia's official head of state, although these days the role is considered primarily ceremonial.
Britain's historic rival and contemporary ally France lowered flags at the presidential palace and public buildings to half-staff in honor of Queen Elizabeth II who died at the age of 96.
President Emmanuel Macron said no other foreign sovereign had visited the Elysee Palace more than Elizabeth, who knew all eight presidents of contemporary France.
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He hailed her “immutable moral authority,” her intimate knowledge of French and the stability she brought “across the fluctuations and upheavals of politics, a permanence with the scent of eternity.”
“The woman who stood alongside the giants of the 20th century on the path of history has left to join them,” he said in a statement, sharing condolences to Britain from “the French Republic and the French people.”
At the British Embassy in Paris, a 20-year-old fashion student was among many who gathered, moist-eyed, with flowers and candles, to bid her adieu.
“When we learned the news we said to ourselves that Queen Elizabeth had followed us a good part of our lives,” said fashion student Theo Maillet. “We wanted to pay homage to her tonight, think of her family, and tell her one final goodbye.”
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Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness noted that ever since she was crowned in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II visited the island every decade until 2002.
“Undoubtedly, she formed a special bond with the people of Jamaica during her reign,” he said. “We are saddened that we will not see her light again, but we will remember her historic reign.”
In March, when Prince William and Kate visited Jamaica as part of an official trip to the Caribbean, Holness made an unexpected announcement in public that the British commonwealth intended to become fully independent.
Since then, Jamaica has established a Constitution Reform Committee and is scheduled to hold a referendum in 2025. If approved, it would join other republics in the region including Barbados, Dominica, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.
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Police in Scotland have removed barriers blocking the gates to Balmoral Castle to allow the public to lay flowers for Queen Elizabeth II.
The area had been blocked off as members of the royal family arrived earlier Thursday.
In London, the wrought iron gates at Buckingham Palace were brightened by dozens of colorful bouquets laid by mourners.
Several sporting events in Britain were called off as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
(With agency inputs)
