LONDON, September 8. /TASS/. Britain’s monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, died at the age of 96 in Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Thursday afternoon, Buckingham Palace said in a press release on Thursday.

"The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow," it says.

A special council will convene within 24 hours after the Queen’s death at the St James's Palace, whose members will announce that a new ruler has ascended to the throne. The Accession Council includes Prime Minister Liz Truss, who assumed this office on Wednesday, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary of State for the Home Department, Foreign Secretary, members of the Privy Council, Lord mayor of the City of London, as well as high commissioners, who represent the UK in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and other parts of the Commonwealth.

The national flag has been lowered at the Buckingham Palace; a mourning note about the Queen’s demise was hanged at the Palace gate.

On Thursday, the Buckingham Palace announced that the medics who examined the Queen, aged 96, expressed their concerns over her health. They recommended the Queen to stay under medical supervision. Soon after, the media reported that Prince Charles arrived at the Balmoral Castle - the Queen’s summer residence - to stay with her. Elizabeth other children - Princess Anna, Princes Edward and Andrew - as well as her grandchildren also immediately departed to the castle.