Prince Harry Claims “Monumental Victory” as Murdoch’s News Group Apologizes for Privacy Intrusions
Prince Harry has declared a “monumental victory” over Rupert Murdoch’s UK newspaper group, News Group Newspapers (NGN), after the publisher issued an unprecedented apology for illegally intruding into his private life for over a decade, Al Jazeera reports.
The settlement, reached just before a scheduled trial, marks a significant moment in Harry’s ongoing battle against the British tabloid press.
Harry, the Duke of Sussex and younger son of King Charles, was suing NGN, publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World, for unlawfully obtaining his private information between 1996 and 2011. In a statement read outside the High Court by his lawyer, David Sherborne, Harry and co-claimant Tom Watson, a former lawmaker, said:
“In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that The Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch’s UK media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices. Today the lies are laid bare. Today, the cover-ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The time for accountability has arrived.”
NGN issued a “full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion… into his private life,” Sherborne said. The publisher also extended its apology for intruding on the life of Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana. The settlement includes a commitment by NGN to pay Harry “substantial damages,” although the specific amount was not disclosed.
The resolution came after a one-day delay to the start of the trial, which was also set to consider a similar lawsuit by Watson. The two parties reached an out-of-court agreement, avoiding a potentially explosive courtroom battle.
NGN has reportedly settled over 1,300 similar claims, involving celebrities and politicians, spending more than 1 billion pounds ($1.24 billion) in payouts and legal fees.
While apologizing for the intrusion, an NGN spokesperson clarified that the apology was specifically for the unlawful actions of private investigators working for The Sun, and not of its journalists.
