Meghan Markle cancels joint EU Parliament speech with Prince Harry
Meghan Markle will not take part in the scheduled EU Parliament address on digital safety and child protection after her father was arrested on child-pornography charges.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, will not deliver the planned joint speech with Prince Harry at a European Parliament meeting on Tuesday, ABC News reported. The address, focused on digital safety and child protection, was to be the couple's first joint overseas engagement since returning to the United Kingdom in August.
The cancellation follows the arrest of Meghan's father, Thomas Markle Sr., by the FBI in Florida on a charge of possession of child pornography. Federal officials said illegal material was allegedly found in storage units he rented in Los Angeles. Markle appeared in U.S. District Court in Tampa, was released on his own recognizance and ordered to home detention with electronic monitoring.
Markle has previously denied similar allegations reported by The Sun and called them "sick lies" in an interview with The Daily Mail. The Philippine Department of Justice later confirmed that an anti-trafficking task force in Cebu was investigating the matter.
Meghan has not commented publicly on her father's arrest. She previously said she was "deeply distressed" by the earlier report and expressed thoughts for any children who may have been harmed.