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Murdoch's UK tabloids apologize to Prince Harry and admit intruding on the late Princess Diana

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Murdoch's UK tabloids apologize to Prince Harry and admit intruding on the late Princess Diana
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Murdoch's UK tabloids apologize to Prince Harry and admit intruding on the late Princess Diana

2025-01-22 23:44 Last Updated At:23:50

LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry claimed a “monumental” victory Wednesday as Rupert Murdoch’s U.K. tabloids made an unprecedented apology for intruding in his life for years, and agreed to pay substantial damages to settle his privacy invasion lawsuit.

News Group Newspapers acknowledged its private investigators and journalists targeted Harry with phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information. The company offered him a “full and unequivocal apology" for intrusion by the now-defunct News of the World and its sister tabloid The Sun.

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FILE - Rebekah Brooks, former News International chief executive, talks to members of the media in central London, Thursday, June 26, 2014. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, File)

FILE - Rebekah Brooks, former News International chief executive, talks to members of the media in central London, Thursday, June 26, 2014. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, File)

FILE -Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrive at United Nations headquarters, July 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE -Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrive at United Nations headquarters, July 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE - Meghan Markle and Prince Harry pose for pictures after visiting the observatory in One World Trade in New York, Sept. 23, 2021.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE - Meghan Markle and Prince Harry pose for pictures after visiting the observatory in One World Trade in New York, Sept. 23, 2021.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle pose for photographers during a photocall in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London, Nov. 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle pose for photographers during a photocall in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London, Nov. 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

FILE -Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, attends the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix auto race at Circuit of the Americas, Oct. 22, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings), File)

FILE -Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, attends the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix auto race at Circuit of the Americas, Oct. 22, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings), File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry leaves after attending an Invictus Games Foundation 10th Anniversary Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral in London, May 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth), File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry leaves after attending an Invictus Games Foundation 10th Anniversary Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral in London, May 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth), File)

Layer Clare Montgomery departs the High Court as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins in London, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Layer Clare Montgomery departs the High Court as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins in London, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson, center, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson, center, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Lawyer David Sherborne, front, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Lawyer David Sherborne, front, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

FILE - News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch delivers a keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in San Francisco, Oct. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

FILE - News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch delivers a keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in San Francisco, Oct. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

The statement, read out at the High Court in London by Harry’s attorney David Sherborne, even went beyond the scope of the case to acknowledge intruding on the life of Harry's mother, the late Princess Diana, and the impact it had on his family.

“We acknowledge and apologize for the distress caused to the duke, and the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages,” the settlement statement said.

News Group has long acknowledged that phones were hacked by staff at the News of the World, the weekly newspaper that Murdoch shut down in 2011 amid a public outcry over tabloid snooping. But this is the first time the company accepted wrongdoing at The Sun, a paper that once sold millions of copies with its formula of sports, celebrities and sex — including topless women on Page 3.

Harry, 40, the younger son of King Charles III, had vowed to take his case to trial to publicly expose The Sun's misdeeds and win a court ruling upholding his claims. He and Tom Watson, a former Labour Party member of Parliament, were the only two remaining claimants out of more than 1,300 others who had settled lawsuits against News Group Newspapers.

The trial was due to start Tuesday, but was postponed amid last-minute negotiations that led to the dramatic settlement announcement.

Although the settlement means Harry will not get his day in court, his lawyer said it delivered the accountability he sought for himself and hundreds of others who were snooped on with intercepted voicemails, tapped phones, bugged cars and various forms of deception.

News Group acknowledged “phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators” aimed at Harry. NGN had strongly denied those allegations before trial.

“This represents a vindication for the hundreds of other claimants who were strong-armed into settling without being able to get to the truth of what was done to them,” Sherborne said outside court.

Harry's feud with the press dates back to his youth, when the tabloids took glee in reporting on everything from his injuries to his girlfriends to dabbling with drugs.

But his fury with the tabloids goes much deeper.

He blames the media for the death of his mother, who was killed in a car crash in 1997 while being chased by paparazzi in Paris. He also blames them for the persistent attacks on his wife, actor Meghan Markle, that led them to leave royal life and flee to the U.S. in 2020.

The litigation has been a source of friction in his family, Harry said in the documentary “Tabloids On Trial.”

He revealed in court papers that his father opposed his lawsuit. He also said his older brother William, Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, had settled a private complaint against News Group that his lawyer has said was worth over 1 million pounds ($1.23 million).

“I’m doing this for my reasons,” Harry told the documentary makers, though he said he wished his family had joined him.

Watson, who was targeted by NGN when he was part of an investigation into allegations of tabloid wrongdoing, also said the intrusion had taken a heavy toll on himself and his family.

“I once said that the big beasts of the tabloid jungle have no predators,” Watson said. “I was wrong, they have Prince Harry. … We are grateful to him for his unwavering support and his determination under extraordinary pressure.”

Watson, who also received an apology and substantial settlement, called on Murdoch to issue a personal apology to Harry, the king and “countless others” affected by tabloid intrusion.

News Group Newspapers said the settlement “draws a line under the past” and ends more than a decade of litigation.

The company has now settled more than 1,300 claims without going to trial. In doing so, it has spent more than 1 billion pounds ($1.24 billion) in payouts and legal costs.

Harry's attorney said the company still had questions to answer. Sherborne said the company engaged in “perjury and cover-ups” to obscure the truth for years, deleting 30 million emails and other records.

“There was an extensive conspiracy,” the statement said, in which “senior executives deliberately obstructed justice.”

News Group said in a statement that it would have disputed at trial that evidence was destroyed and it continues to deny those allegations.

Sherborne took aim at former Sun editor Rebekah Brooks, now the CEO overseeing News Group, who was acquitted of phone hacking a decade ago.

“At her trial in 2014, Rebekah Brooks said, ‘When I was editor of The Sun, we ran a clean ship,’” he said. ”Ten years later when she is CEO of the company, they now admit, when she was editor of The Sun, they ran a criminal enterprise.”

NGN apologized for wrongdoing by private eyes hired by The Sun, but not for anything done by its journalists, adding: “There was no voicemail interception on The Sun.”

Harry’s case against NGN was one of three he brought accusing British tabloids of violating his privacy by eavesdropping on phone messages or using private investigators to unlawfully help them score scoops.

His case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror ended in victory when the judge ruled that phone hacking was “widespread and habitual” at the newspaper and its sister publications.

During that trial in 2023, Harry became the first senior member of the royal family to testify in court since the late 19th century, putting him at odds with the monarchy’s desire to keep its problems out of view.

The outcome in the News Group case raises questions about how his third case — against the publisher of the Daily Mail — will proceed. That trial is scheduled next year.

FILE - Rebekah Brooks, former News International chief executive, talks to members of the media in central London, Thursday, June 26, 2014. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, File)

FILE - Rebekah Brooks, former News International chief executive, talks to members of the media in central London, Thursday, June 26, 2014. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, File)

FILE -Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrive at United Nations headquarters, July 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE -Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrive at United Nations headquarters, July 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE - Meghan Markle and Prince Harry pose for pictures after visiting the observatory in One World Trade in New York, Sept. 23, 2021.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE - Meghan Markle and Prince Harry pose for pictures after visiting the observatory in One World Trade in New York, Sept. 23, 2021.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle pose for photographers during a photocall in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London, Nov. 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle pose for photographers during a photocall in the grounds of Kensington Palace in London, Nov. 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

FILE -Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, attends the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix auto race at Circuit of the Americas, Oct. 22, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings), File)

FILE -Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, attends the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix auto race at Circuit of the Americas, Oct. 22, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings), File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry leaves after attending an Invictus Games Foundation 10th Anniversary Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral in London, May 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth), File)

FILE -Britain's Prince Harry leaves after attending an Invictus Games Foundation 10th Anniversary Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral in London, May 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth), File)

Layer Clare Montgomery departs the High Court as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins in London, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Layer Clare Montgomery departs the High Court as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins in London, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson, center, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson, center, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Lawyer David Sherborne, front, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Lawyer David Sherborne, front, arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

British lawmaker Tom Watson arrives at the High Court, as Prince Harry's legal action against News Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering begins, in London, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

FILE - News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch delivers a keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in San Francisco, Oct. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

FILE - News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch delivers a keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in San Francisco, Oct. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

FILE - Prince Harry leaves the High Court after giving evidence in London, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

Next Article

Sam Nujoma, Namibia's fiery freedom fighter and first president, dies aged 95

2025-02-09 13:53 Last Updated At:14:00

WINDHOEK, Namibia (AP) — Sam Nujoma, the fiery freedom fighter who led Namibia to independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990 and served as its first president for 15 years, and was known as the father of the nation, has died. He was 95.

Nujoma's death was announced Sunday by current Namibian President Nangolo Mbumba. Mbumba said Nujoma died on Saturday night after being hospitalized in the capital, Windhoek.

"The foundations of the Republic of Namibia have been shaken," Mbumba said in a statement. “Over the past three weeks, the Founding President of the Republic of Namibia and Founding Father of the Namibian Nation was hospitalized for medical treatment and medical observation due to ill health."

"Unfortunately, this time, the most gallant son of our land could not recover from his illness," Mbumba added.

Nujoma was revered in his homeland as a charismatic father figure who steered his country to democracy and stability after long colonial rule by Germany and a bitter war of independence from South Africa. He spent nearly 30 years in exile as the leader of its independence movement before returning to be elected his country's first democratic leader in 1990.

Nujoma, with his trademark white beard, was the last of a generation of African leaders who brought their countries out of colonial or white minority rule that included South Africa's Nelson Mandela, Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, Zambia's Kenneth Kaunda and Mozambique's Samora Machel.

Many Namibians credited Nujoma's leadership for the process of national healing and reconciliation after the deep divisions caused by the independence war and South Africa's policies of dividing the country into ethnically based regional governments, with separate education and health care for each race.

Even his political opponents praised Nujoma — who was branded a Marxist and accused of ruthless suppression of dissent while in exile — for establishing a democratic Constitution and involving white businessmen and politicians in government after independence.

Despite his pragmatism and nation-building at home, Nujoma often hit foreign headlines for his fierce anti-Western rhetoric. He claimed AIDS was a man-made biological weapon and also occasionally waged a verbal war on homosexuality, calling gays “idiots” and branding homosexuality a “foreign and corrupt ideology.”

Nujoma built ties with North Korea, Cuba, Russia and China, some of which had supported Namibia's liberation movement by providing arms and training.

But he balanced that with outreach to the West, and Nujoma was the first African leader to be hosted at the White House by former U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1993. Clinton called Nujoma “the George Washington of his country” and “a genuine hero of the world’s movement toward democracy.”

Nujoma grew up in a rural, impoverished family, the eldest of 11 children. His early life revolved around looking after his parents' cattle and the cultivation of land. He attended a mission school before moving to Windhoek and working for South African Railways.

He was arrested following a political protest in 1959 and fled the territory shortly after his release. In exile, he helped establish the South West African People’s Organization and was named its president in 1960. SWAPO has been Namibia's ruling party since 1990.

When South Africa refused to heed a 1966 U.N. resolution ending its mandate over the former German colony of South West Africa, Nujoma launched SWAPO’s guerrilla campaign.

“We started the armed struggle with only two sub-machine guns and two pistols,” Nujoma once said. “I got them from Algeria, plus some rounds of ammunition.”

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

FILE - South African President F.W. de Klerk delivers his speech in Windhoek, Namibia, March 21, 1990, where he handed over Namibia to Namibian President Sam Nujoma, seated left, during an independence ceremony. (AP Photo/John Parkin, File)

FILE - South African President F.W. de Klerk delivers his speech in Windhoek, Namibia, March 21, 1990, where he handed over Namibia to Namibian President Sam Nujoma, seated left, during an independence ceremony. (AP Photo/John Parkin, File)

FILE - Cuban President Fidel Castro, left, hugs Namibian President Sam Nujoma during an official welcome ceremony in the state council in Havana, Cuba, June 23, 2004. (Sven Creutzmann/Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Cuban President Fidel Castro, left, hugs Namibian President Sam Nujoma during an official welcome ceremony in the state council in Havana, Cuba, June 23, 2004. (Sven Creutzmann/Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Namibian President Sam Nujoma, right, casts his vote as an unidentified election worker looks on during the Day 1 of the 2004 elections in Windhoek, Namibia, Nov. 15, 2004. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

FILE - Namibian President Sam Nujoma, right, casts his vote as an unidentified election worker looks on during the Day 1 of the 2004 elections in Windhoek, Namibia, Nov. 15, 2004. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

FILE - South African President Nelson Mandela, right, shakes hands with Namibian President Sam Nujoma at the presidential residence in Pretoria, South Africa, June 1, 1999, on the eve of the country's second all-race elections. (AP Photo/Jean-Marc Bouju, File)

FILE - South African President Nelson Mandela, right, shakes hands with Namibian President Sam Nujoma at the presidential residence in Pretoria, South Africa, June 1, 1999, on the eve of the country's second all-race elections. (AP Photo/Jean-Marc Bouju, File)

FILE - Namibian and ruling Swapo party President Sam Nujoma speaks during an election rally in Windhoek, Namibia, Nov. 13, 2004. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

FILE - Namibian and ruling Swapo party President Sam Nujoma speaks during an election rally in Windhoek, Namibia, Nov. 13, 2004. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

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