Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with US television host Oprah Winfrey. AFP
Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with US television host Oprah Winfrey. AFP
Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with US television host Oprah Winfrey. AFP
Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with US television host Oprah Winfrey. AFP

Meghan Markle tells Oprah she felt suicidal and accuses UK royal family of racism


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The Duchess of Sussex said racism and Buckingham Palace’s refusal to let her seek treatment for suicidal thoughts led to the couple leaving the British royal family.

In one of the biggest bombshells of the  tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey on Sunday, the couple claimed a member of the royal family asked "how dark" her son Archie's skin colour would be.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle also pinpointed an incident in which the Duchess of Cambridge allegedly made Ms Markle cry was a turning point in their relationship with the royal family.

In another damaging claim, Prince Harry revealed that his father, Prince Charles, stopped taking his calls when he wanted to step back, saying he felt "let down" by him.

The highly anticipated interview was far more accusatory than expected and risks morphing into the biggest crisis to hit the monarchy since the death of Princess Diana in 1997.

Ms Markle painted a picture of a toxic environment that took an enormous toll on her mental health, saying that she came close to suicide while pregnant with her first child.

“I just didn’t want to be alive anymore,” she said. “And that was a very clear and real and frightening constant thought.”

Ms Markle said that Buckingham Palace’s refusal to rebuff false claims that fuelled negative press against her worsened her depression.

In the two-hour interview broadcast on primetime television in the US, she tearfully recalled how she found the situation “unsurvivable”, while recounting Prince Harry cradling her after she told him the extent of her deteriorating mental health.

Prince Harry said Ms Markle's mixed-race heritage fuelled much of the negative press, and the couple claimed that members of the royal family voiced concerns about how dark their son's skin tone would be, during the duchess's first pregnancy.

I saw history repeating itself because you add racism, and you add social media in

The couple refused to divulge who made these comments, as doing so would be too “damaging” to the individuals in question.

However, they said that the family’s conversations with Prince Harry over his unborn child’s skin tone occurred at the same time that the royals decided that the child would not receive the title of prince or princess.

“That was when they were saying they didn’t want him to be a prince or princess – not knowing what the gender would be – and that he wasn’t going to receive security,” said Ms Markle. “This went on for the last few months of our pregnancy.”

On Monday morning, Oprah said the comments were not made b the Queen or Prince Philip. She said on CBS This Morning that when the cameras were down, Harry made it clear to her it was neither of "his grandparents".

Speaking of her conversations with the palace, Ms Markle said: “We haven’t created this monster machine around us in terms of clickbait and tabloid fodder.

“You’ve allowed this to happen, which means our son has to be safe.”

Prince Harry expressed anger that no one in his family came to Ms Markle’s defence amid negative press coverage, even though 72 British Members of Parliament condemned the “colonial” coverage of the duchess.

He repeatedly drew parallels to the criticism his wife faced to the scrutiny his mother, Princess Diana, endured in the lead-up to her death in 1997.

“I saw history repeating itself, because you add racism, and you add social media in,” he said.

Despite the toll on her mental health, Ms Markle claimed Buckingham Palace refused to let her seek medical treatment.

“I went to human resources and I said I really need help because at my old job there was a union and they would protect me,” said Ms Markle.

“They said, 'My heart goes out to you and I see how bad it is, but there’s nothing we can do to protect you because you’re not a paid employee of the institution.'”

“This wasn’t a choice,” she said. “This was me begging for help and saying I’m concerned for my mental welfare.”

Meghan said that she felt "haunted" by a photograph from an official event she attended with Harry at the Royal Albert Hall while she was pregnant.

"Right before we had to leave for that (event), I had just had that conversation with Harry that morning," Meghan said.

Winfrey asked: "That you don't want to be alive anymore?"

An official photo from the 2019 event that the Duchess of Sussex said haunts her. Getty Images
An official photo from the 2019 event that the Duchess of Sussex said haunts her. Getty Images

"Yeah," Meghan confirmed.

She said that she attended the event with Harry that night because she felt she could not be "left alone" and recalled Harry gripping her hand tightly while in attendance at the Royal Albert Hall.

At one point she thought she "could not feel lonelier".

Meghan ultimately sought support from an unidentified friend of Princess Diana.

”It takes some much courage to admit that you need help - to admit how dark of a place you’re in,” she said.

Ms Markle claimed that she was told not to leave her home for months on end because the royal family’s communications advisers wanted her to keep a low profile amid all the negative tabloid coverage.

She compared the confinement to the Covid-19 lockdowns that much of the world has experienced in the past year.

“I couldn’t call an Uber from the palace,” she said. “When you join that family, that was my last time, until I came here, that I saw my driver’s licence, my passport, my keys. All that gets turned over.”

Ms Markle also said the communications team would not correct factually untrue stories about her, despite doing so for other members of the family.

For the first time, she rebuffed a widespread story that she had made Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge and the wife of Harry's brother Prince William, cry in the lead-up to Ms Markle's wedding. Instead, she claimed, Ms Middleton had made her cry.

Prince Harry also denied reports that their decision to step back from their roles in the family “blindsided” the queen, claiming that he had had frequent discussions with her in the years leading up to the decision.

He also claimed that his father Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, had stopped taking his phone calls for a period of time.

"There's a lot to work through there, you know? I feel really let down, because he's been through something similar. He knows what pain feels like," an emotional Harry said.

“I will always love him but there’s a lot of hurt that’s happened."

The couple also said that their relationship with the royal family will formally end at the end of the month and that their new child, who is expected this summer, is a girl.

Harry 'shocked' over skin colour question

Harr said he was "never going to share" which family member asked him about the colour of his unborn child's skin.

"But at the time, it was awkward. I was a bit shocked," he said.

"That was right at the beginning when she wasn't going to get security, when members of my family were suggesting that she carries on acting because there's not enough money to pay for her, and all this sort of stuff. There were some real obvious signs, before we even got married, that this was going to be really hard."

Meghan also declined to name who expressed those concerns: "I think that would be very damaging to them. That was relayed to me from Harry, those were conversations that family had with him."

Asked whether there were concerns that her child would be “too brown” and that would be a problem, Meghan told Winfrey: “If that is the assumption you are making, that is a pretty safe one.”

Meghan on Kate crying story: It was character assassination 

It was sensational tabloid fodder: the story of how of Meghan made Kate Middleton cry after a bridesmaid dress fitting for Princess Charlotte.

And by Meghan's account - it was entirely fabricated.

"Everyone in the institution knew it wasn't true," the duchess told Winfrey of the alleged incident, claiming that in reality: "The reverse happened."

Kate, she said, "was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologised".

"A few days before the wedding, she was upset about something pertaining - yes, the issue was correct - about flower girl dresses, and it made me cry, and it really hurt my feelings."

Meghan called the incident "a turning point" in her relations with the royal family.

"The narrative about, you know, making Kate cry I think was the beginning of a real character assassination," she said.

"And they knew it wasn't true. And I thought, well, if they're not going to kill things like that, then what are we going to do?

"I came to understand that not only was I not being protected but that they were willing to lie to protect other members of the family."

Harry feels 'let down' by Prince Charles

Speaking candidly about his relationship with Prince Charles, Harry said had he felt "really let down" by his father throughout the painful episode - but that they were now talking to one another.

"There's a lot to work through there, you know? I feel really let down, because he's been through something similar. He knows what pain feels like," an emotional Harry said.

“I will always love him but there’s a lot of hurt that’s happened.

“My family literally cut me off financially. But I’ve got what my mum left me and without that we would not have been able to do this.”

He said Charles and Harry's older brother William were "trapped" by the conventions of the monarchy, but vowed he would "always love" his father.

"My father and my brother, they are trapped. They don't get to leave. And I have huge compassion for that.

"Much will continue to be said about that ... as I said before, you know, I love William to bits, he's my brother, we've been through hell together and we have a shared experience. But we're on different paths."

Harry went on say that he and Meghan "did everything we could" to stay in the royal family.

"I'm sad that what's happened has happened, but I know, and I'm comfortable in knowing that we did everything that we could to make it work."

Harry denies disrespecting queen 

Asked whether he told his family about his plans to step away from his royal roles and about a newspaper story that they had "blindsided" the queen with their decision, Harry said: "I've never blindsided my grandmother, I have too much respect for her."

Asked where the story came from, he said: "I'd hazard a guess that it probably could have come from within the institution.

"I had three conversations with my grandmother, and two conversations with my father before he stopped taking my calls. And then he said, can you put this all in writing?"

Asked why Prince Charles had stopped taking his calls: he said: "By that point I took matters into my own hands, it was like, I needed to do this for my family. This is not a surprise to anybody. It's really sad that it's got to this point, but I've got to do something for my own mental health, my wife's and for Archie's as well."

Harry says his mum would want him to be happy

Asked how his late mother would think about his split from the royal family in January 2020, Harry replied: “she would feel very angry with how this has panned out and very sad. But ultimately, all she’d have ever wanted is for us to be happy.”

Harry compared media behaviour to that faced by Princess Diana before her death in a Paris car crash in 1997.

"My biggest concern was history repeating itself, and I've said that before on numerous occasions, very publicly. And what I was seeing was history repeating itself, but more perhaps more definitely far more dangerous because then you add race in, and you add social media and when I'm talking about history repeating itself I'm talking about my mother."

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

UAE tour of the Netherlands

UAE squad: Rohan Mustafa (captain), Shaiman Anwar, Ghulam Shabber, Mohammed Qasim, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Chirag Suri, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Mohammed Naveed, Amjad Javed, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fixtures:
Monday, 1st 50-over match
Wednesday, 2nd 50-over match
Thursday, 3rd 50-over match

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

THE SPECS

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm

Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto

Top speed: 250kph

Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: Dh146,999

Kandahar%20
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Vikram%20Vedha
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Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20WonderTree%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20April%202016%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Muhammad%20Waqas%20and%20Muhammad%20Usman%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Karachi%2C%20Pakistan%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%2C%20and%20Delaware%2C%20US%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Special%20education%2C%20education%20technology%2C%20assistive%20technology%2C%20augmented%20reality%3Cbr%3EN%3Cstrong%3Eumber%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EGrowth%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Grants%20from%20the%20Lego%20Foundation%2C%20UAE's%20Anjal%20Z%2C%20Unicef%2C%20Pakistan's%20Ignite%20National%20Technology%20Fund%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs

Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo

Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm

Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

Price: from Dh130,000

On sale: now

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Day 1 results:

Open Men (bonus points in brackets)
New Zealand 125 (1) beat UAE 111 (3)
India 111 (4) beat Singapore 75 (0)
South Africa 66 (2) beat Sri Lanka 57 (2)
Australia 126 (4) beat Malaysia -16 (0)

Open Women
New Zealand 64 (2) beat South Africa 57 (2)
England 69 (3) beat UAE 63 (1)
Australia 124 (4) beat UAE 23 (0)
New Zealand 74 (2) beat England 55 (2)

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The specs

Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 380hp at 5,800rpm

Torque: 530Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Price: From Dh299,000 ($81,415)

On sale: Now

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

The specs

Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder

Power: 220 and 280 horsepower

Torque: 350 and 360Nm

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT 

On sale: now

Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
  • Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
  • Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
  • Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
 
 
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

Rating: 3/5

THE SPECS

Range Rover Sport Autobiography Dynamic

Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8

Transmission: six-speed manual

Power: 518bhp

Torque: 625Nm

Speed: 0-100kmh 5.3 seconds

Price: Dh633,435

On sale: now

Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut

Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Who has been sanctioned?

Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.

Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.

Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.

Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.

The specs: 2019 BMW i8 Roadster

Price, base: Dh708,750

Engine: 1.5L three-cylinder petrol, plus 11.6 kWh lithium-ion battery

Transmission: Six-speed automatic

Power: 374hp (total)

Torque: 570Nm (total)

Fuel economy, combined: 2.0L / 100km

A Long Way Home by Peter Carey
Faber & Faber