Meghan Markle has reportedly pulled out of giving a joint speech with Prince Harry, but will still attend the planned event as her husband speaks alone on online child safety
Meghan Markle has pulled out of making a joint speech with Prince Harry in Brussels about online child safety because she is “not strong enough” after her father’s arrest. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex had both been due to deliver the keynote address to the European Parliament on Tuesday (November 10).
The duchess will still join Harry at the event, but has decided not to speak after Thomas Markle Sr appeared in court on Friday charged with possession of child abuse material.
“She’s just not strong enough, emotionally, to be doing any public speaking right now,” a source told The Telegraph. The event will be the first time Meghan will have been seen in public since the allegations surrounding Markle Sr.
He appeared in court in the US on Friday (November 6), charged with possessing child sexual abuse images. Harry’s now-solo speech will take place at the opening of the Lost Screen Memorial, an art installation honouring children who have died after being subjected to harm online.
A spokesperson for the duchess has been approached for comment. This comes after reports that Meghan hopes for “justice” after her estranged dad was charged with possessing child abuse images, the Daily Star reported.
The Duchess of Sussex, 45, is hoping for a “full investigation” into Thomas Markle, a close friend said as Thomas appeared before a court in Florida on Friday night after being arrested a care home where he was living.
He is accused of hoarding a stash of illegal material, including photos of himself with naked young girls.
A close friend of the Duchess, who has kept her distance from her dad and not let have contact with her children, said: “It is her sincerest hope that a full and thorough investigation will now help deliver justice for the victims.”
Thomas was arrested on Friday as FBI agents sensationally swooped on a specialist dementia care facility where he was staying in Tampa, Florida. He later appeared in court where charges were put to him.
The bombshell arrest came after the dozens of items were seized from two Los Angeles storage units he rented for nearly two decades. He is charged with one count of possession of child pornography.
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