Meghan Markle breaks her silence after father Thomas Markle hit with child abuse material allegations

Key points

• Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has made her first public response after her estranged father, Thomas Markle, was accused of possessing child abuse material at his former home in the Philippines. It is alleged that his son, Thomas Markle Jnr, found large boxes of images and videos there and reported them.
• Philippine police have reportedly opened an investigation. Meghan said she was first told of troubling allegations against her father in 2018 and that she was assured they were being investigated.
• She said her distance from him was meant to protect her children.