Prince Harry faces crushing defeat in UK security appeal

Prince Harry just took a major hit in his years-long fight to reinstate government-funded security in the UK.

The Duke of Sussex lost his appeal on Friday, May 2, after a court ruled the government acted fairly when it chose to assess his protection on a case-by-case basis.

The verdict is a major blow for Harry, who previously expressed that he does not feel safe to bring his wife Meghan Markle and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, to the UK without the security measures he got when he was a working royal.

The ruling not only upheld a previous High Court decision but also leaves Harry facing a hefty legal bill — covering both his own costs and those of the UK government. 

Harry personally attended the two-day hearing last month, where his attorney, Shaheed Fatima, argued that the prince’s life was in danger.

“There is a person sitting behind me who is being told he is getting a special bespoke process when he knows and has experienced a process that is manifestly inferior in every respect,” she said.

But the government’s lawyer pushed back hard, accusing Harry of “a continued failure to see the wood for the trees.”

Harry and Meghan gave up royal duties in 2020, a move his team says came after feeling unprotected by the monarchy. Since then, Harry claims he’s faced multiple threats to his and his family’s safety, including assassination threats.

Still, the courts say the UK’s current approach is legal and justified.

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