Sept. 6, 2026

Prince Harry Security Threat Revealed as Al Qaeda Claim Raises New Questions About UK Protection

Show Notes
Transcript

Prince Harry’s security battle takes a serious new turn amid reports his lawyers accused the head of the royal protection committee of failing to pass along information about an al Qaeda threat against him. Former senior police officials argue Harry’s threat level remains substantial and question why he does not receive the protection afforded to other high-profile figures, even as critics mock the Sussexes for returning to a country Harry previously described as unsafe for his family. We examine the reported terrorist threats, the latest RAVEC assessment and what Harry and Meghan’s return means for their protection. Plus, Lady Louise Windsor’s relationship with Felix da Silva-Clamp appears increasingly serious as speculation grows that King William could eventually ask her to become a working royal.

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Palace Intrigue is a daily British royal family podcast covering King Charles, Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Kate Middleton and the House of Windsor. New episodes every day. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

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Caloroga Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I

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am your host, Mark Francis. Radar Online claims Harry and

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Meghan are already facing mockery over their security arrangements after

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returning to Britain, with critics questioning why the country is

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now safe enough for the family, despite Harry's previous concerns. Radar,

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citing a security source familiar with Royal Protection, reports... The

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sight of Harry returning with relatively little visible security has

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inevitably provoked mockery because he spent years arguing that the

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protection available to his family was inadequate. Critics are asking

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how the situation can suddenly be acceptable when he previously

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said security concerns prevented Meghan and the children from coming here.

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There has been some pretty merciless trolling online. That is

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obviously social media mockery rather than a serious security assessment,

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but it shows how his previous actions warnings are now

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being thrown back at him. One Cotswolds resident told Radar,

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People here have been talking for days about the possibility

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that Harry and Meghan have quietly bought a property here.

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The story going around is that it is an extremely

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private house, well hidden from the road, and offering exactly

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the sort of seclusion you would expect them to want.

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What has really fuelled the speculation is the sudden appearance

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of security personnel keeping a close eye on vehicles entering

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and leaving the village. There is a genuine buzz locally

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because Having Harry and Meghan living practically on the doorstep

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would be extraordinary. Another resident sounded more welcoming. It would

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certainly put this place on the map if Harry and

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Meghan really are moving here. Most people would probably be

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fascinated to see how they fit into village life after

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everything that has happened. You would hope they could eventually

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feel comfortable enough to walk through the door of the pub,

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order a drink and be treated like any other couple

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living locally, rather than having everything become a huge royal spectacle.

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But Radar also found at least one resident... who was

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decidedly less enthusiastic. I wouldn't be celebrating their arrival. A

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lot of people haven't forgotten everything that happened after they

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left Britain, or what was subsequently said about the royal family.

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I don't have much sympathy for Harry after the way

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that relationship deteriorated. If he really is coming home permanently,

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there will inevitably be people wondering why he has suddenly

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decided Britain isn't such a bad place after all. Neil

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Bazu served as an assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police

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and was responsible for royal police protection before leaving the

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force in 2022 and is not mocking the security request.

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Speaking on the Crime Agents podcast, Bazu said Harry faced

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threats from both Islamist extremists and the extreme right during

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his time as a working royal. Given that he served

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his country and he's been one of the most vilified

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members of the public and he's one of the most

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famous people in the world and effectively he has had

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Islamist extremist threats and extreme right-wing threats. In 2019, he

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was one of the people we thought needed the full package.

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In 2026, he doesn't. I have never been able to

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see why this threat risk has reduced, whether you like

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him or don't. Having protection is one of the most

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intrusive things. He only wants it because he's genuinely in

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fear of his life, and more importantly, his wife and children.

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They wouldn't be as safe using private protection as if

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they were given police protection, because I know the standard

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and calibre of close protection would be at a high level.

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The difference between the kind of security he can have

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as a private citizen and the kind of security he

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can have as a police officer, our security are armed

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and he isn't going to have an armed response. Scott Harmer,

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a former Metropolitan Police protection officer who previously protected King

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Charles when he was Prince of Wales, tells ITV that

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is nowhere near sufficient. A phone number is not protection,

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Harmer said. It's a fudge. I have been involved in

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protection for 25 years. I find it absolutely incredible. We

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currently have eight non-working prime ministers who are in receipt

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of police protection that is paid for by the public.

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The threat and risks to Prince Harry are far greater.

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I am not privy to the intelligence regarding Liz Truss,

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but having been prime minister for 49 days, if we

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are basing this purely on threat and risk, which it

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should be, I would argue that Prince Harry should be

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in receipt of protection. It's putting them in danger. The

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Those people out there who may wish to do him harm,

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or his family harm, now know what his protection is

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or isn't like, and that creates a risk. What we

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should be looking at is purely threat and risk. If

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you look at those objectively then, I would argue that

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the current threat and risk to him is his family

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would mean that he should be entitled to police protection.

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It should not be about personality. Prince Harry is accused

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the head of the body responsible for royal security decisions,

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of failing to pass along information about an al-Qaeda threat

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against him. According to the Sunday Times, Harry's legal team

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raised the accusation in a letter to Home Secretary Shabana

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Mahmood in August. Harry reportedly asked Mahmood to become personally

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involved in determining whether he and his family should receive

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close police protection. Harry's lawyers reportedly alleged that Ravek's chair

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knew about an al-Qaeda threat made against the Duke in 2023,

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but failed to pass that information to Harry's security team

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or to American authorities, even though Harry was living in

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the US at the time. Harry has repeatedly argued that

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he and his family face what he describes as an

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international threat. In late 2023, intelligence was reportedly passed to

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the FBI through the Five Eyes Intelligence Alliance concerning an

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al-Qaeda document that referenced Harry's assassination. The Independent reports there

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have been at least six threats or plots involving Harry

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from the Taliban, al-Qaeda, or their supporters since 2007. In 2012,

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a Taliban spokesman announced an operation to kill or kidnap Harry.

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Two years earlier, threats reportedly included plans to shoot down

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the Apache helicopter. Harry might fly and capture him if

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he returned to Afghanistan. Earlier this year, ITV reported that

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a security assessment commissioned by Harry's private security company identified

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six terrorist plots involving the Duke, five of them originating

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in Britain. That report, which detailed numerous threats and potential

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attacks involving both Harry and Meghan was reportedly provided to Ravek.

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A new risk assessment, ordered by Ravek, is understood to

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have been completed at the end of July, although Harry

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reportedly had not been told his conclusion. More Palace in

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just a moment. Lady Louise Windsor's relationship with Felix de

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Silva Clamp appears to be becoming increasingly serious, and there

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are signs he is very much part of the Edinburgh

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family circle. Lady Louise and Felix, both 22 and recent

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graduates of St Andrews, recently joined Prince Edward and Sophie,

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Duchess of Edinburgh, for a night at the theatre in London.

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The four recently attended a performance of Inala at the

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House of Sisters Grimm Theatre in the West End, later

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posing together for photographs and meeting members of the cast.

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The evening was particularly appropriate for Louise and Felix because

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theatre apparently played a part in bringing them together. The

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two met while studying at St Andrews and were cast

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in the student production Dragon Fever in 2024, the play

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was described as a combination of an Agatha Christie-style mystery

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and The Hobbit following nine strangers who set off to

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kill a dragon before their adventure turns into a murder mystery.

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Since then, Felix has increasingly appeared alongside Louise at important moments.

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Earlier this month, he watched her compete in the Glebe

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Estate Carriage Driving Trials. Carriage driving is one of Louise's

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great passions and something she shared with her grandfather, Prince Philip.

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Felix was also present when Louise received the Duke of

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Edinburgh's gold award from her father at the Palace of

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Holyrood House. And perhaps the clearest indication that he has

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been welcomed to the family came around Louise's graduation from

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St Andrews. Felix attended the ceremony alongside Edward and Sophie,

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and photographs show Sophie warmly embracing him afterward. All of

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this comes at an interesting moment for Lady Louise herself.

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She has finished her degree in English Literature and International

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Relations and is now taking a gap year. Buckingham Palace

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says she plans to spend the year working, volunteering and travelling,

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while officials are declining to say what career she may

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ultimately pursue. That has kept a live speculation about whether

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Louise could eventually become a working royal. She and her

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younger brother, James Earl of Wessex, were entitled to use

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the styles of prince and princess and HRH because they

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are grandchildren of a monarch through the male line. Edward

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and Sophie instead raised them without using those styles, with

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Sophie previously explaining that they were being brought up expecting

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to work for a living. But royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams

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believes that could eventually change, particularly when Prince William becomes king.

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Fitzwilliams said, William will have appreciated the excellent way the

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Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh support the firm. With relatively

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few younger working royals available, he believes Louise could eventually

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be asked to help. The signs are surely that with

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only four working royals currently under 70, and the Wales'

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children still young, that Lady Louise might be persuaded to

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carry out some royal duties in the future. It would

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certainly be in the interest of the monarchy and all

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of us if she carried out royal duties. And there

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you have it. If you'd like to email us, our

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just five bucks a month. We appreciate your support. I'm

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Mark Francis. My thanks to John McDermott. This is Palace Intrigued.

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Good times.

Prince Harry Security Threat Revealed as Al Qaeda Claim Raises New Questions About UK Protection

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