\n
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nMeghan Markle\u2019s estranged father has denied claims made by the duchess\u2019s estranged half-sister that he is stranded in the Philippines following Tuesday\u2019s powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake.<\/p>\n
Samantha, eldest daughter of 81-year-old Thomas Markle from his first marriage, took to X on Tuesday, claiming: \u201cMy father is stuck on the 19th floor of a building in the Philippines after a massive earthquake and he can\u2019t walk and he is trapped.\u201d<\/p>\n
Placing the blame on Meghan, she said: \u201cShame on my disgusting evil f***ing sister forever putting our father in this position. I hope she is cursed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The proud MAGA supporter followed up in another post, writing: \u201cShame on Harry and Meghan. May they be damned.. he [Thomas] gave her everything and this is how she repays him.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, according to TMZ<\/em>, Thomas has insisted he is safe and in no way \u201ctrapped\u201d and \u201cunable to walk.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
\n<\/p>\n
open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Meghan Markle is estranged from both her father and his two adult children (Getty Images for TIME)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\u201cI\u2019m currently sitting on the couch in my hotel room, with my feet kicked up and watching Charlie Chan movies. I\u2019m quite comfortable,\u201d he told the outlet, noting that the earthquake\u2019s epicenter was about 100 miles from where he lives. <\/p>\n
He added that he hasn\u2019t even spoken to Samantha and is unsure why she said he was trapped. <\/p>\n
The Independent <\/em>has contacted Samantha, a relative of Thomas, and a representative for Meghan for comment.<\/p>\nIn the comments section of Samantha\u2019s post, one user was skeptical about whether Samantha had actually spoken to her father. <\/p>\n
Using an ableist slur, she fired back: \u201cI talked to my dad several times a day and was on the phone with him my brother and our friend I had texted him right before and was on the phone while they were trying to figure out what to do. What do you mean how would I get a hold of him? Maybe you don\u2019t know about phones or texting?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\n<\/p>\n
open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Thomas Markle, 81, is a retired TV lighting technician and director of photography (Good Morning Britain)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nSamantha then shared an update Wednesday, hours before her father spoke out: \u201cI wish to extend our deep gratitude to everyone expressing concern about my father,\u201d she said. \u201cThank you. As of today he is OK , and making plans to get out of that building. They seem to be safe for now, and hopefully there will be no serious aftershocks. Provisions are being made so that he won’t be trapped in a similar situation again. God bless and stay safe everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
As of Wednesday, the death toll had risen to 69 as rescuers searched for survivors in collapsed buildings and landslide-hit villages on the island of Cebu.<\/p>\n
Thomas, a retired TV lighting technician and director of photography, relocated to Cebu earlier this year in search of a \u201cfresh start\u201d away from the \u201cawful drama of recent years.\u201d His son, Thomas Jr., Meghan\u2019s estranged half-brother, moved with him. <\/p>\n
\u201cI am ready for a change,\u201d Thomas told the Daily Mail <\/em>at the time. \u201cI have felt stuck in a rut for some time, and I am ready to meet new people and experience kindness.\u201d<\/p>\nHe added: \u201cAt 80, it is time to go somewhere where the people are lovely and I can enjoy a quieter, friendlier existence. In South East Asia the medical care is good, you can live reasonably cheaply, the people are kind and respect older people and the food is healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meghan is Thomas\u2019s youngest child, whom he shares with his second ex-wife, Doria Ragland. They were married from 1979 to 1987. <\/p>\n
The Duchess, 44, reportedly cut ties with her father in 2018 after finding out that he had staged paparazzi photos.<\/p>\n
Thomas has on numerous occasions spoken publicly, and controversially, about his fraught relationship with his daughter. However, over the years, he has expressed his hopes that they could reconcile, even issuing a public apology during a March 2021 appearance on Good Morning Britain<\/em>. <\/p>\n\u201cI\u2019m sorry for what I\u2019ve done,\u201d he said. \u201cI wish I hadn\u2019t done the whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier that month, Meghan broke her silence on her father, telling Oprah Winfrey in a bombshell interview: \u201cI grieve a lot. I mean, I\u2019ve lost my father.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more Meghan Markle\u2019s estranged father has denied claims made by the duchess\u2019s estranged half-sister that he is stranded in the Philippines following Tuesday\u2019s powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake. Samantha, eldest daughter of 81-year-old Thomas Markle from his first marriage, took to X on Tuesday, claiming: \u201cMy father is stuck on the 19th floor of a building in the Philippines after a massive earthquake and he can\u2019t walk and he is trapped.\u201d Placing the blame on Meghan, she said: \u201cShame on my disgusting evil f***ing sister forever putting our father in this position. I hope she is cursed.\u201d The proud MAGA supporter followed up in another post, writing: \u201cShame on Harry and Meghan. May they be damned.. he [Thomas] gave her everything and this is how she repays him.\u201d However, according to TMZ, Thomas has insisted he is safe and in no way \u201ctrapped\u201d and \u201cunable to walk.\u201d open image in gallery Meghan Markle is estranged from both her father and his two adult children (Getty Images for TIME) \u201cI\u2019m currently sitting on the couch in my …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6757"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6757"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6757\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}