Prince Harry claimed that he filed the libel lawsuit against a British tabloid because its story about the Duke of Sussex allegedly abandoning the Royal Marines could make more veterans "susceptible to suicide."
Court documents filed by Harry's lawyers showed that the Duke of Sussex grew concerned over Mail on Sunday's derogatory story as it puts the veterans at risk of not seeking any help extended to them due to Harry's alleged abandonment.
Mail on Sunday published a story in October 2020, which suggested that Harry hasn't been in touch with the Royal Marines since he left for the United States in March, following his royal exit with Meghan Markle. As part of the Sussex pair's arrangement with Queen Elizabeth, Harry had to give up being the Captain General of the Royal Marines as he was no longer a working royal.
The tabloid indicated that Harry "snubbed" his former colleagues after a letter from former Chief of the General Staff Lord Dannatt was left unanswered. In it, Dannatt apparently asked Harry to continue supporting the Royal Marines as a former veteran.
Harry's lawyers said the implications of the tabloid story belittled the royal's credibility and hampered his ability to help out the veterans. While the Duke of Sussex is no longer the Captain General, he still has his Invictus Games, the sports competition for former veterans who have physical disabilities or mental struggles as a result of being in the frontlines.
The lawyers also said that Mail on Sunday only gave Harry three hours to air his side before printing the story. Following the libel, the news outlet issued a retraction to state that they have learned the Duke of Sussex has been communicating his Royal Marines colleagues in "a private capacity" and that he has responded to Lord Dannatt's letter as well.
Apart from issuing an apology to Harry, Mail on Sunday's publisher, the Associated Newspapers, also donated to the Invictus Games. However, the libel case will still apparently proceed in court. According to Fox News, Harry's legal team is yet to make an open statement to further clarify and correct the derogatory story. No date has been set for this next legal proceeding.
Mail on Sunday and the Associated Newspapers are also the defendants in another lawsuit filed by the Duchess of Sussex, who claimed that the publication violated the United Kingdom's data privacy law when it published the private letters Meghan wrote to her father, Thomas Markle. Meghan's lawyers will argue for a summary judgment on this case in the coming weeks.
