Prince William honours world-famous climber Nirmal Purja who died in Pakistan avalanche

Nirmal Purja (centre) was a famed mountaineer (Picture: AFP) Prince William has paid tribute to a former British Army soldier who died after 10 mountaineers were hit by an avalanche in Pakistan on Thursday. Nirmal Purja was leading a group up Broad Peak, one of the world’s highest mountains, when an avalanche hit around midday. The bodies of three climbers – Nadhira Alharthy, the first Omani woman to summit Mount Everest; Sarah Mallory Geis, an American climber; and Pur Bahadur Gurung, a Nepali climber – were recovered yesterday. Purja’s guiding company, Elite Exped, confirmed today that the British-Nepali mountaineer, 43, was also killed. Speaking this evening, the Prince of Wales said he was ‘truly saddened’ by the news, writing on social media that Purja was ‘one of the world’s greatest