The Duchess of Sussex has insisted she has made contact with her estranged father, after Thomas Markle pleaded with her to see him “one more time, before I die”.
Sources close to the duchess confirmed to The Sunday Times that she had emailed him on Friday, despite claims Markle was “confused” by reports that his daughter had “reached out” to him.
On Wednesday Markle, 81, underwent emergency surgery in the Philippines to treat a blood clot. The operation is believed to have resulted in the amputation of his left leg.
Harry and Meghan with their son Archie in 2019
SAMIR HUSSEIN/WIREIMAGE
Markle told the Mail on Sunday that he desired to meet his grandchildren “before it’s too late”, and said that he had not changed his number so that Meghan “could always get in touch with me”.
The newspaper said it had spoken to the hospital’s administration office, reception, intensive care unit and hospital staff attending to Markle, who all said they had not received contact from the duchess or her staff.
However, sources disputed this and stated that a message had been sent to her father via email.
Markle was said to have been in a stable condition on Friday after an operation. Reports, which have not been independently verified by The Sunday Times, said the surgery was to amputate one of his legs. A surgeon attending to the duchess’s father told The Mail on Sunday there was a “massive blood clot in his thigh that had stopped circulation” to his foot and lower leg. “It was life-or-death surgery. Had the infection in the foot moved to his heart, it would most likely have been fatal. He is doing well but he is not out of the woods yet.”
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Markle and his daughter have been estranged since the run-up to her wedding to Prince Harry in 2018. Meghan’s father had been due to walk her down the aisle at St George’s Chapel in Windsor but relations became strained when it emerged that he had staged pictures with a photographer. He then pulled out of attending the wedding, citing ill-health.
In his absence the King, then Prince of Wales, gave Meghan away.
Sources close to the duchess insist that she has tried to reach out to her father several times since her wedding. He has never met Harry or the couple’s children, Prince Archie, six, and Princess Lilibet, four.
This year Markle moved from his home in Mexico to the Philippines. He now lives with his son, Thomas Markle Jr, 59, who has urged his half-sister to contact their father.
Thomas Markle Jr
GILBERT CARRASQUILLO/GETTY IMAGES
Referring to her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, which focuses on the importance of family relationships, he said: “I would ask Meg, on a week when she has released a TV show talking about the power of love and family, to reach out to our dad … she needs to start showing the compassion she preaches about.”
Meghan’s half-sister Samantha Markle, 61, said she felt the events of the past few years had taken their toll on their father. “He is a strong man, but he has been through so much. I am praying that he is strong enough to survive this,” she said.
“My father has been through two heart attacks, a stroke and an earthquake. I hope he can pull through this.”
On Saturday night Thomas Markle remained in a stable condition at the hospital in Cebu, an island in the centre of the Philippines. He is expected to be moved out of the intensive care unit as early as Sunday.