Prince Harry defends Meghan Markle in emotional statement after she sues newspaper

Meghan Markle has taken legal action against Mail on Sunday after they published a handwritten letter the Duchess had sent to her estranged father. She sues the UK newspaper "over the misuse of private information, infringement of copyright and breach of the Data Protection Act 2018". According to their website, all proceeds from any damages will be donated to an anti-bullying charity.

The announcement of the lawsuit comes with an emotional statement by Prince Harry, who adresses the media's unfair treatment of his wife, which he calls "bullying". "To stand back and do nothing would be contrary to everything we believe in", he explains.

The statement starts with Harry highlighting how important media freedom and truthful reporting is in today's time. He goes on to accuse a British tabloid press - namely Mail on Sunday - of waging "campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences" - specifically against Meghan.

"There is a human cost to this relentless propaganda, specifically when it is knowingly false and malicious, and though we have continued to put on a brave face – as so many of you can relate to – I cannot begin to describe how painful it has been. Because in today's digital age, press fabrications are repurposed as truth across the globe. One day's coverage is no longer tomorrow's chip-paper", Harry states.

He further suggests that the newspaper used Meghan's absence during her maternity leave to spread lies about her. "For these select media this is a game, and one that we have been unwilling to play from the start. I have been a silent witness to her private suffering for too long", he explains.

This and the publication of a private letter written by the Duchess led to the couple taking legal action against the newspaper: "The contents of a private letter were published unlawfully in an intentionally destructive manner to manipulate you, the reader, and further the divisive agenda of the media group in question. In addition to their unlawful publication of this private document, they purposely misled you by strategically omitting select paragraphs, specific sentences, and even singular words to mask the lies they had perpetuated for over a year."

"There comes a point when the only thing to do is to stand up to this behaviour, because it destroys people and destroys lives. Put simply, it is bullying, which scares and silences people. We all know this isn't acceptable, at any level. We won't and can't believe in a world where there is no accountability for this", he adds.

Harry ends the statement with a heavy, emotional gut punch: "Though this action may not be the safe one, it is the right one. Because my deepest fear is history repeating itself. I've seen what happens when someone I love is commoditised to the point that they are no longer treated or seen as a real person. I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces."

Read the full statement here.