Meghan Markle has been personally ringing hospitals across the Philippines in an attempt to track down her estranged father following his emergency surgery.
The Duchess of Sussex, 44, wants to deliver a handwritten letter to Thomas Markle, 81, whose leg was amputated below the knee after doctors removed a blood clot.
Her initial attempts to reach him via email proved unsuccessful after news of his operation emerged last Wednesday.
The duchess then took matters into her own hands, telephoning multiple medical facilities directly, though these efforts have also failed to locate him.
Meghan Markle has been personally ringing hospitals across the Philippines in an attempt to track down her estranged father following his emergency surgery.
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Her team believes Mr Markle is being treated at a hospital in Cebu, where he relocated from Mexico earlier this year, but they have been unable to verify this.
Mr Markle collapsed at his home in Cebu last week, prompting emergency medical intervention.
Surgeons performed an initial operation followed by a second procedure to address a blood clot, ultimately resulting in the amputation of his lower leg.
One of his surgeons in the Philippines described the gravity of the situation to the Mail on Sunday.
“We had to remove the foot. There was a massive blood clot in his thigh and that had stopped circulation to his foot and lower leg,” the surgeon said.
“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.”
The Duchess instructed her staff to verify reports about her father’s health before attempting contact via email.
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The Duchess instructed her staff to verify reports about her father’s health before attempting contact via email.
Mr Markle subsequently expressed confusion to the Mail on Sunday about claims she had tried to reach him, stating his phone number remained unchanged and he had received nothing.
The email was reportedly sent to an address he had not used for five years, though sources indicated it appeared to have been delivered successfully.
Prior to relocating to the Philippines, Mr Markle conducted numerous media interviews pleading for his daughter to make contact.
The 81-year-old has never met his grandchildren, Prince Archie, now six, and Princess Lilibet, four. Prince Harry has also never met his father-in-law.
In his memoir Spare, the Duke of Sussex wrote that his wife was “mourning” the loss of her father.
Following his medical emergency, Mr Markle made a public appeal asking to see his daughter “one more time before I die”.
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Getty / GB NewsFollowing his medical emergency, Mr Markle made a public appeal asking to see his daughter “one more time before I die”.
The Duchess’s aides have made clear they will reach out if Mr Markle provides an alternative email address or if the Mail on Sunday shares his contact details.
The tabloid has reportedly not responded to requests for a phone number, email address, or information about which hospital is treating him.
Complicating matters further, Mr Markle is said not to have his phone with him currently.
Sources suggested that even if the correct number were obtained, leaving a voicemail would be “extraordinarily irresponsible” given Prince Harry’s previous experience with phone hacking.
A spokesman for Meghan confirmed on Friday evening: “I can confirm she has reached out to her father.”
A spokesperson for DMG Media, which owns the Mail on Sunday, said: “Our journalist, Caroline Graham, has had a close relationship with Mr Markle since 2018. He contacted Ms Graham when he was taken ill and asked her to travel to the Philippines to be with him. Nothing has been published without his specific consent and that of his son.
“Ms Graham has confirmed to the Duchess of Sussex’s representative that Mr Markle does not have an active email address but that his phone number, which the Duchess has previously used for him, remains unchanged.
“Ms Graham has made clear that if she can do anything to facilitate contact between Mr Markle and his daughter to have a conversation, then she would be happy to do so. That remains the case.
“Any suggestion we have ‘puppeteered’ Mr Markle is entirely false and strongly denied.”