Prince Harry sued for defamation by charity he set up to honour mother Princess Diana
The spokesperson of Harry and his friend, Mark Dyer, has said the duo "categorically reject these offensive and damaging claims".
Sentebale, a charity co-founded by Prince Harry in Africa to honour his late mother, Princess Diana, has sued him for defamation after he stepped down as a patron in 2025.
The charity, supporting children and young people living with HIV in Botswana and Lesotho, filed a suit on March 24 in London’s High Court, records accessed by the Associated Press show.
Sentebale has sought the intervention of the court seeking “protection, and restitution,” which it claims followed a “coordinated adverse media campaign” running since March 25, 2025. It stated that the campaign had resulted in “operational disruption and reputational harm to the charity, its leadership, and its strategic partners.”
Harry, along with his friend, Mark Dyer, a former trustee of the charity, was being sued for either libel or slander, AP noted, putting them in the position of defendants in the high court. Their spokesperson, however, in response, said the duo “categorically reject these offensive and damaging claims”.
“It is extraordinary that charitable funds are now being used to pursue legal action against the very people who built and supported the organisation for nearly two decades, rather than being directed to the communities the charity was created to serve,” the spokesperson added.
Sentebale, in its official statement, emphasised that Harry and Dyer were the “architects” of the viral media campaign that triggered an “onslaught of cyberbullying” for the charity’s leadership.
The false narratives were circulated through media about the charity and associated leadership, which, according to Sentebale, attempted to “undermine its relationships with staff, existing and prospective partners, and the forced diversion of leadership time and resources into managing a reputational crisis not of the charity’s making,” The Guardian quoted.
It stated that the board and executive director of the organisation have chosen to take the legal route seeking the protection of its resources, and urging it to halt their usage to address the damage caused by the fake media campaign to its operations.
Denying the use of charitable funds for the purpose, the charity also confirmed that the costs of the damage were being borne by external funding.
The relationship between Prince Harry and the charity’s chair, Sophie Chandauka, has been “beyond repair” since 2023.
Back then, a dispute involving a new fundraising strategy escalated, with Chandauka accusing Harry of orchestrating a campaign of bullying and harassment, forcing her out of the organisation, AP highlighted.
Chandauka, speaking to Sky News, said that filming for one of Harry’s Netflix programmes had interfered with a scheduled fundraiser for Sentebale. She also claimed that an incident with his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, had also become a source of discord.
As disagreements continued, the two founders stepped down as patrons in March 2025 in support of the trustees who had quit, the report noted.
Following a thorough investigation, the Charity Commission for England and Wales, in August 2025, came down heavily on both parties for allowing the matter to play out in public and damaging the organisation’s reputation, The Guardian report stated. The Commission also cleared Harry of racism.
“Sentebale’s problems played out in the public eye, enabling a damaging dispute to harm the charity’s reputation, risk overshadowing its many achievements, and jeopardising the charity’s ability to deliver for the very beneficiaries it was created to serve,” the commission’s CEO, David Holdsworth, said in a statement.
In response to the Commission’s report, Harry’s spokesperson informed the commission that there were no findings of any wrongdoing in relation to Prince Harry.
The Commission had also found no evidence of widespread bullying or misogyny at Sentebale. “They also found no evidence of widespread bullying, harassment or misogyny and misogynoir at the charity, as falsely claimed by the current chair,” the report quoted Harry’s confidante as saying.
“Despite all that, their report falls troublingly short in many regards, primarily the fact that the consequences of the current chair’s actions will not be borne by her – but by the children who rely on Sentebale’s support,” the spokesperson added.
What is Sentebale all about?
Harry’s charity, Sentebale, translates to “forget-me-not” in the local language of Lesotho.
It works with children and young people in southern Africa, including those dealing with HIV-AIDS, to help them access healthcare, education, while equipping them with critical life skills, advocacy, vocational training, and climate resilience, the organisation’s website stated.
Set up in 2006 in memory of Princess Diana, who was a prominent advocate for the treatment of HIV and AIDS, and helped reduce stigma around the disease, the organisation employs strategic interventions to advocate for those from vulnerable backgrounds.
Prince Seeiso of Lesotho was the co-founder of the charity.
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Sentebale, a charity co-founded by Prince Harry in Africa to honour his late mother, Princess Diana, has sued him for defamation after he stepped down as a patron in 2025.
The charity, supporting children and young people living with HIV in Botswana and Lesotho, filed a suit on March 24 in London’s High Court, records accessed by the Associated Press show.
Sentebale has sought the intervention of the court seeking “protection, and restitution,” which it claims followed a “coordinated adverse media campaign” running since March 25, 2025. It stated that the campaign had resulted in “operational disruption and reputational harm to the charity, its leadership, and its strategic partners.”
Harry, along with his friend, Mark Dyer, a former trustee of the charity, was being sued for either libel or slander, AP noted, putting them in the position of defendants in the high court. Their spokesperson, however, in response, said the duo “categorically reject these offensive and damaging claims”.
“It is extraordinary that charitable funds are now being used to pursue legal action against the very people who built and supported the organisation for nearly two decades, rather than being directed to the communities the charity was created to serve,” the spokesperson added.
Sentebale, in its official statement, emphasised that Harry and Dyer were the “architects” of the viral media campaign that triggered an “onslaught of cyberbullying” for the charity’s leadership.
The false narratives were circulated through media about the charity and associated leadership, which, according to Sentebale, attempted to “undermine its relationships with staff, existing and prospective partners, and the forced diversion of leadership time and resources into managing a reputational crisis not of the charity’s making,” The Guardian quoted.
It stated that the board and executive director of the organisation have chosen to take the legal route seeking the protection of its resources, and urging it to halt their usage to address the damage caused by the fake media campaign to its operations.
Denying the use of charitable funds for the purpose, the charity also confirmed that the costs of the damage were being borne by external funding.
The relationship between Prince Harry and the charity’s chair, Sophie Chandauka, has been “beyond repair” since 2023.
Back then, a dispute involving a new fundraising strategy escalated, with Chandauka accusing Harry of orchestrating a campaign of bullying and harassment, forcing her out of the organisation, AP highlighted.
Chandauka, speaking to Sky News, said that filming for one of Harry’s Netflix programmes had interfered with a scheduled fundraiser for Sentebale. She also claimed that an incident with his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, had also become a source of discord.
As disagreements continued, the two founders stepped down as patrons in March 2025 in support of the trustees who had quit, the report noted.
Following a thorough investigation, the Charity Commission for England and Wales, in August 2025, came down heavily on both parties for allowing the matter to play out in public and damaging the organisation’s reputation, The Guardian report stated. The Commission also cleared Harry of racism.
“Sentebale’s problems played out in the public eye, enabling a damaging dispute to harm the charity’s reputation, risk overshadowing its many achievements, and jeopardising the charity’s ability to deliver for the very beneficiaries it was created to serve,” the commission’s CEO, David Holdsworth, said in a statement.
In response to the Commission’s report, Harry’s spokesperson informed the commission that there were no findings of any wrongdoing in relation to Prince Harry.
The Commission had also found no evidence of widespread bullying or misogyny at Sentebale. “They also found no evidence of widespread bullying, harassment or misogyny and misogynoir at the charity, as falsely claimed by the current chair,” the report quoted Harry’s confidante as saying.
“Despite all that, their report falls troublingly short in many regards, primarily the fact that the consequences of the current chair’s actions will not be borne by her – but by the children who rely on Sentebale’s support,” the spokesperson added.
What is Sentebale all about?
Harry’s charity, Sentebale, translates to “forget-me-not” in the local language of Lesotho.
It works with children and young people in southern Africa, including those dealing with HIV-AIDS, to help them access healthcare, education, while equipping them with critical life skills, advocacy, vocational training, and climate resilience, the organisation’s website stated.
Set up in 2006 in memory of Princess Diana, who was a prominent advocate for the treatment of HIV and AIDS, and helped reduce stigma around the disease, the organisation employs strategic interventions to advocate for those from vulnerable backgrounds.
Prince Seeiso of Lesotho was the co-founder of the charity.
