Meghan Markle enjoyed a sweet treat with her family, including her daughter, Princess Lilibet. The little royal’s red hair was spotted in a clip Meghan shared to her Instagram Stories.
“A special gift ‘papa brought back from Ukraine,’” Meghan, 43, captioned the video that showed some little hands reaching for what looked like a piece of frosted cake in the center of a table on April 12.
Prince Harry and Meghan have kept photos of Lilibet, 3, and son, Prince Archie, out of the public eye for the most part, allowing only small glimpses of their children in pictures they share on social media. The couple has occasionally shared photos of the kids in the past on holiday cards, but even that’s fairly rare.
In 2020, when Harry, 40, and Meghan took a step back from their royal duties and moved to America, their public-funded security was removed and instead provided on a case-by-case basis. Since then, Harry’s been entwined in a legal battle as he challenged the decision.
“Prince Harry inherited a security risk at birth, for life. He remains sixth in line to the throne, served two tours of combat duty in Afghanistan, and in recent years his family has been subjected to well-documented neo-Nazi and extremist threats,” a representative for the prince said in a statement per Sky News. “While his role within the institution has changed, his profile as a member of the Royal Family has not. Nor has the threat to him and his family.”
Harry has also cited incidents like a “near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi” in 2023 as a reason security for his family was needed.
A spokesperson for the couple said that the chase lasted “over two hours” and “resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers.”
“While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety,” the spokesperson continued. “Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all in involved.”
However, in February 2024, the courts ruled against Harry and stated that the decision “was not irrational or procedurally unfair,” according to Hello Magazine.
The tragic death of Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, in 1997 has also affected his decision to keep Archie, 5, and Lilibet out of the spotlight.
“Harry has been reluctant to show his children publicly, not out of a desire to hide them but to protect their privacy and safety from potential threats,” a friend of Harry’s told People in an interview published on December 16, 2024. “He wants them to lead as normal a life as possible without the fear of kidnapping or harm. As a dad and husband, Harry is determined to ensure that history doesn’t repeat itself.”
On April 9, Harry’s appeal took yet another blow. As he left the courthouse, he told People that he was feeling “exhausted and overwhelmed” and said that his “worst fears have been confirmed by the whole legal disclosure in this case — and that’s really sad.”
However, the final result from the appeal isn’t expected for several weeks.
