A prominent adviser to US presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr has ignited a political and media firestorm by making a wildly speculative and unsubstantiated claim about the British Royal Family.
Dr Rizza Islam, who serves on Kennedy's campaign team, took to social media to publicly allege that the recent cancer diagnoses of both King Charles III and the Princess of Wales were a direct result of them receiving Covid-19 vaccinations. The claims have been widely condemned as dangerous misinformation.
Baseless Allegations Against the Monarchy
In a now-deleted post on the platform X (formerly Twitter), Dr Islam directly targeted the monarch and the future queen. He wrote: 'King Charles and Kate Middleton both got the jab. Now they both have cancer. You won't hear a peep from the mainstream media about the obvious connection.'
These assertions are made in direct contradiction to official statements from Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace. The King's cancer was discovered during a separate procedure for an enlarged prostate, while the Princess's cancer was found post-abdominal surgery. Their medical teams have not cited any link to vaccinations.
Buckingham Palace's Stance and Public Backlash
The royal households have consistently supported the NHS's vaccination efforts. King Charles was famously vaccinated publicly in early 2021, alongside the Queen Consort, in a move designed to encourage public trust and uptake of the vaccine.
Health experts and fact-checkers have been quick to dismantle Dr Islam's claims. There is no credible scientific evidence linking the Covid-19 vaccine to the development of cancer. Such claims are routinely debunked by leading oncologists and global health bodies, including the NHS and the World Health Organization.
A Pattern of Controversy for RFK Jr's Campaign
This incident places further scrutiny on Robert F Kennedy Jr's presidential campaign, which has become a hub for anti-vaccine sentiment and conspiracy theories. The employment of advisers like Dr Islam, who promotes such baseless claims about foreign heads of state, raises questions about the campaign's rhetoric and its potential diplomatic ramifications.
The episode highlights the ongoing challenge of combating medical misinformation, particularly when it is leveraged for political gain and targets high-profile individuals.
