Prince Harry to Discover Outcome of UK Tabloids Case

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry departs after attending court for his appeal against the rejection of his legal challenge to the British government's decision to take away his police protection when he is in Britain, outside the High Court in London, Britain, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry departs after attending court for his appeal against the rejection of his legal challenge to the British government's decision to take away his police protection when he is in Britain, outside the High Court in London, Britain, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
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Prince Harry to Discover Outcome of UK Tabloids Case

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry departs after attending court for his appeal against the rejection of his legal challenge to the British government's decision to take away his police protection when he is in Britain, outside the High Court in London, Britain, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry departs after attending court for his appeal against the rejection of his legal challenge to the British government's decision to take away his police protection when he is in Britain, outside the High Court in London, Britain, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo

Prince Harry was in Britain on Tuesday as a court was set to rule in his case against the Daily Mail's publisher for alleged unlawful information gathering.

A judge at London's High Court was due to publish a written decision at 2:00 pm (1300 GMT), following an 11-week trial earlier this year in Harry's claim against Associated Newspapers.

The prince gave emotional testimony during the proceedings, in which several high-profile figures, including pop star Elton John and actor Elizabeth Hurley, accused the tabloid publisher of invading their privacy.

Harry's lawyers have said the claimants are seeking "substantial" damages for their claims, which relate to articles dating from 1993 to 2018.

It is the third, and set to be final, case brought by the Duke of Sussex in his acrimonious legal battle with British tabloids, which has further strained relations with the royal family.

Harry, 41 - the youngest son of King Charles III - has also been involved in other legal spats, including over his police protection in Britain following his dramatic departure from frontline royal duties six years ago.

The prince, now living in California, arrived in Britain on Monday for a five-day visit expected to go ahead mostly without his wife and children after the family was refused police protection.

The trip, to mark the one-year countdown to next year's Invictus Games for wounded veterans, which Harry founded, was meant to be his first family trip back to the UK in four years.

But a source close to the Duke of Sussex told AFP that Harry's wife Meghan, son Archie and daughter Lilibet would not accompany him on the London leg of the trip after the family was refused security.

Arrangements for the rest of the trip were still under consideration, the source said, leaving it unclear whether the whole family would visit but stay outside the capital.

Contradictory statements about plans to stay at Buckingham Palace while in London added to the prince's headaches.

Just ahead of Harry's arrival, Buckingham Palace contradicted the duke's team to say that he would not be staying at the palace after missing a deadline to accept the accommodation offer.

Harry's spokesman said it was "disappointing" the offer to be hosted by his father had been "withdrawn at the last moment", in a statement sent to AFP.

- Security woes -

It was unclear whether the prince would meet his father during the trip. He is last understood to have met Charles, who is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer, at the monarch's London residence Clarence House in September 2025.

Harry and Meghan left Britain for North America in 2020 amid a bitter feud with his family, which worsened as Harry published his tell-all memoir "Spare".

The prince has since said he wishes to reconcile with his father, but the confusion over where Harry was going to stay in London suggest relations remain difficult.

According to his spokesperson, Harry had to make "alternative security arrangements" for the trip after publicly funded protection was refused, contributing to the delay in accepting Buckingham Palace's accommodation offer.

"It is therefore unclear why, having formally accepted the accommodation offer, it has now been withdrawn at the last moment," the spokesman said.

Beyond logistical complications, the palace believed the legal judgement expected Tuesday had complicated matters as it could compromise the king's constitutional position, the PA news agency reported.

Last year, Harry said he felt unable to bring his family to Britain after losing a court case to have his security restored during visits home.

Harry has long blamed the media for the death of his mother Princess Diana, who was killed in a Paris car crash in 1997 while trying to shake off the paparazzi.

"He understands how that protection can fail and how catastrophic, therefore, those results can be," Simon Morgan, a former bodyguard for the royal family, told AFP on Monday.



Paris Landmarks Shutter Early as Quarter of France Swelters Under Heatwave

 A sign informs visitors that the Eiffel Tower will close at 16:00 CEST today due to extreme temperatures during a heatwave in Paris, France, July 11, 2026. (Reuters)
A sign informs visitors that the Eiffel Tower will close at 16:00 CEST today due to extreme temperatures during a heatwave in Paris, France, July 11, 2026. (Reuters)
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Paris Landmarks Shutter Early as Quarter of France Swelters Under Heatwave

 A sign informs visitors that the Eiffel Tower will close at 16:00 CEST today due to extreme temperatures during a heatwave in Paris, France, July 11, 2026. (Reuters)
A sign informs visitors that the Eiffel Tower will close at 16:00 CEST today due to extreme temperatures during a heatwave in Paris, France, July 11, 2026. (Reuters)

The Eiffel Tower and other Paris landmarks announced early closures over the weekend as a quarter of mainland France was under the highest heat alert level on Saturday in the third heatwave to hit the country since May.

The operator of the Eiffel Tower said the latticed-steel monument would "exceptionally close" early on Saturday and Sunday at 4 pm (1400 GMT), "due to the high temperatures forecast".

The 324-meter (1,063-foot) tower, which attracts seven million tourists a year, usually stays open past midnight during the high season.

Two of the French capital's most famous museums, the Louvre and the Musee d'Orsay, have taken similar measures.

The Louvre, the most visited museum in the world, said on Thursday it would close at 4 pm from Friday through to Monday.

The Musee D'Orsay announced it would also close early, "due to the extreme heat" at 5 pm from Saturday to Wednesday.

Twenty-four departments, home to 22.2 million people according to an AFP calculation, were under the maximum alert level issued by the national weather service Meteo-France on Saturday.

Another 59 departments of 96 in mainland France were under an orange heat warning, a step below the highest, as people flooded trains and highways at the start of a holiday weekend ahead of France's national public holiday on July 14.

Across France, many towns have called off their firework displays for Bastille Day due to increased fires and dry conditions.

Wildfires have scorched twice as much land in France so far this year as in the same period last year, an official said on Friday.

French President Emmanuel Macron called for vigilance on Saturday, warning nine out of 10 fires are due to human activity.

"A single second of inattention can put families at risk, endanger those who protect us and destroy our countryside," he wrote on X.

The European nation is facing its third heatwave since May, with a heatwave in June shattering records.

The country recorded more than 2,000 excess deaths during the June heatwave, and 300 during the high temperatures in late May, according to official figures.

The government has faced a barrage of criticism, accused of being "unprepared" for the extreme weather, the increasing frequency of which scientists have linked to man-made climate change.

High temperatures are expected to continue until Bastille Day, according to Meteo-France.


Dangerous Heatwave Is Building, Will Bring Oppressive Temperatures to Much of the US

Visitors use fans as as they wait to enter the Washington Monument, July 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
Visitors use fans as as they wait to enter the Washington Monument, July 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
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Dangerous Heatwave Is Building, Will Bring Oppressive Temperatures to Much of the US

Visitors use fans as as they wait to enter the Washington Monument, July 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
Visitors use fans as as they wait to enter the Washington Monument, July 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP)

A widespread and dangerous heatwave is building across the US, with triple-digit highs expected in the Southwest and Great Plains this weekend before spreading eastward under a dome of high pressure that meteorologists say could trap oppressive temperatures for a week or more.

Forecasters are advising people to stay hydrated and find places to cool off, warning of temperatures 15 to 25 degrees Fahrenheit (8 to 14 degrees Celsius) warmer than normal in many areas, including at night — especially bad for people's health because their bodies won't have a chance to recover. The heat dome is expected to affect as much as two-thirds of the continental United States.

“The heat doesn’t necessarily stop when it’s dark out,” said Josh Adam, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Bismarck, North Dakota, where temperatures will surpass 100 F (37 C) until Tuesday. That is a dramatic spike for a state where summer temperatures are typically in the 80s, he said.

The National Weather Service predicts that more than 90 US local temperature records will be tied or broken through Wednesday — with two-thirds of those being overnight heat records. Temperatures won’t drop below 80 F (27 C) at night in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Miami; Tampa, Florida; Galveston, Texas; and Charleston, South Carolina, according to the forecast.

The current heat dome — formed when high pressure traps hot air while blocking cooling winds and rain — is one of the strongest to affect the Dakotas in 25 years, said Chad Merrill, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.

Forecasters expect record triple-digit highs this weekend in Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota.

Nevada, a state accustomed to hot weather, is even hotter than normal, said Andrew Gorelow, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Las Vegas. The temperature in Las Vegas is expected to hit 111 F (48 C) on Saturday, Gorelow said.

Hydrating and finding cool spaces is critical, experts said.

They also warn the heat could spike fire risk to some parts of the country that already are dry, including the Rockies, where Merrill said dry thunderstorms could develop.

Climate change from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas is causing more intense and longer-lasting heatwaves that cover larger areas, scientists say.

This year's temperatures also are expected to be affected by El Nino, a natural warming of the equatorial Pacific that alters weather patterns and spikes temperatures across the globe.

The current El Nino — which formed last month and is too young to have affected this heatwave much — is expected to rank as among the most intense since the weather service began tracking them in 1950, experts said.

It has an 81% chance of becoming “very strong” — the top category — by fall, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday.


Charles Hosted Prince Harry and Family for First Time in Years as They Try to Repair a Family Rift

Britain's Prince Harry speaks at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the primary venue for the 2027 Invictus Games, as it marks one year until the event, in Marston Green, near Birmingham, Britain, July 10, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool via Reuters)
Britain's Prince Harry speaks at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the primary venue for the 2027 Invictus Games, as it marks one year until the event, in Marston Green, near Birmingham, Britain, July 10, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool via Reuters)
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Charles Hosted Prince Harry and Family for First Time in Years as They Try to Repair a Family Rift

Britain's Prince Harry speaks at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the primary venue for the 2027 Invictus Games, as it marks one year until the event, in Marston Green, near Birmingham, Britain, July 10, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool via Reuters)
Britain's Prince Harry speaks at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the primary venue for the 2027 Invictus Games, as it marks one year until the event, in Marston Green, near Birmingham, Britain, July 10, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool via Reuters)

King Charles III hosted Prince Harry and met with his family for the first time in years Friday as they try to repair a rift that has persisted since his youngest son and wife quit royal life and moved to America six years ago.

Harry, Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, met with the king and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House, a country estate west of London, Buckingham Palace confirmed.

The Duke of Sussex had arrived Monday in his homeland for a number of charity events that were overshadowed by speculation of whether he would meet with his father.

British tabloids and news broadcasts were filled with speculation about whether Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, would accompany him and, more importantly, whether they would bring their two children so they can finally get to know Grandpa Charles.

However, the monarch’s schedule is often years in the making, with events penciled in long before they take place. An opportunity to hold such a meeting would have been fleeting, particularly because the children would need to return to school in the fall and because they live in California.

The wish to seize the moment fueled tensions between Harry and royal officials earlier this week. That was highlighted by embarrassing scenes when royal officials first invited Harry to stay at Buckingham Palace, then rescinded the offer after the prince didn’t accept it in a timely manner.

Harry’s visit also coincided with him losing his final lawsuit in his quest to tame the British tabloids. A judge ruled that he failed to prove his privacy invasion claims against the publisher of the Daily Mail.

His legal battles have been a source of friction with his family, however. Harry has said he wants to reconcile with his 77-year-old father, who is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer.

Harry and Charles met briefly for a cup of tea in September during a short visit in London, the first time they’d seen each other in well over a year.

But the prince has also wanted his children to see the monarch, whom they first met during celebrations for the late Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022.

The royal children, Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, are now old enough to remember meeting their grandfather, and will certainly hope for pictures with the king, though the event was deemed private and no images will be publicly released.

Tensions within the House of Windsor have heightened ever since Harry and Meghan gave up their royal duties and moved to California to pursue lucrative media deals, free from the pressures of royal life in London.

They reached a new low after Harry published an explosive memoir that included unflattering depictions of the royal family and damning allegations of a toxic relationship between the monarchy and the press.

Harry’s description of royals leaking information about other family members in exchange for positive coverage of themselves is just one of the tawdry allegations in his book, “Spare.” The prince was especially scathing about Camilla, accusing her of feeding private conversations to the media as she sought to rehabilitate her image after her longtime affair with Charles when he was heir to the throne.

After losing a court battle over his security issue last year, Harry said he hoped to rebuild relations with his family, even as he suggested that the royals had sought to prevent him from receiving police protection to punish him for walking away from royal duties.

“I would love reconciliation with my family. There’s no point in continuing to fight anymore,” Harry told the BBC. “I don’t know how much longer my father has.”

The visit Friday is a step toward mending those fences.