Prince Harry Accuses Royal Family Of Intentionally Withholding Information Over Phone Hack Lawsuit
Prince Harry slammed his Royal family members as he appeared in court this week for a civil case against Associated Newspapers. The Duke of Sussex accused his family of intentionally withholding information about a phone hack, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The civil suit accused the publisher of illegally gathering information on high-profile individuals like Prince Harry, Elton John, and Jude Law, among others. The lawsuit alleged the publisher hacked phones and placed listening devices in intimate settings like a vehicle to gather information for future articles.
In a written statement submitted to the court, the Duke of Sussex lashed out at his family's "never complain, never explain" policy to the media.
"Following the death of my mother in 1997 when I was 12 years old and her treatment at the hands of the press, I have always had an uneasy relationship with the press," Prince Harry claimed in his written statement. "However, as a member of the Institution the policy was to 'never complain, never explain.' There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it."
"For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions," Prince Harry added.
The Duke of Sussex credited his wife, Meghan Markle, for opening his eyes to the British media and its alleged mistreatment of public figures.
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Prince Harry revealed that dating Meghan made him "increasingly troubled by the approach of not taking action against the press in the wake of vicious persistent attacks on, harassment of and intrusive, sometimes racist articles."
The Duke also claimed that "the situation got worse" after Meghan gave birth to their first child together, Archie, in 2019.
Prince Harry then directly addressed the Royal family and their policy towards the media.
"The Institution was without a doubt withholding information from me for a long time about NGN's phone hacking and that has only become clear in recent years as I have pursued my own claim with different legal advice and representation," Prince Harry said.
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"It is not an exaggeration to say that the bubble burst in terms of what I knew in 2020 when I moved out of the United Kingdom," Prince Harry continued on how his famous Megxit allowed him to pursue legal action on his own for the alleged hacking.
The Duke of Sussex also warned current Royals were allegedly in the dark about their own claims and being targeted by similar phone hacks.
"To this day, there are members of the Royal Family and friends of mine who may have been targeted by NGN and I have no idea whether they have or have not brought claims," Prince Harry added. "There was never any centralised discussion between us about who had brought claims as each office in the Institution is siloed.
"There is this misconception that we are all in constant communication with one another but that is not true."
Prince Harry insisted that his statement was not about himself or for his own public image, but to check the so-called unlimited powers of the British press for public transparency.
"I am bringing this claim because I love my country and I remain deeply concerned by the unchecked power, influence and criminality of Associated," his statement read. "The evidence I have seen shows that Associated's journalists are criminals with journalistic powers which should concern every single one of us."
"The British public deserve to know the full extent of this cover up and I feel it is my duty to expose it," Prince Harry added.