Harry and Meghan Take the Diana Route to Show What the Royal Family Is Missing
The couple’s hospital bedside moment and refugee camp visit revive memories of Diana’s direct and compassionate approach.
The royal family has had a rocky start to their new year, after the King’s brother, the first in modern royal history to face such a situation, was arrested over allegations of misconduct in public office. That shadow has followed the royals wherever they have gone, with members of the public heckling them during walkabouts and engagements. Meanwhile, the King’s younger, estranged son, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle were far removed from the turmoil — away from the immediate scrutiny — and instead engaged in the kind of humanitarian work Princess Diana was known for.
In Amman, Harry and Markle visited the Specialty Hospital, where they met Maria, a 14-year-old burns victim injured in an explosion in Gaza that killed her parents and four other family members. Doctors explained that she had narrowly avoided amputation of her right leg, though she lost her toes. The couple listened closely at her bedside as medical staff outlined her treatment and recovery.
At one point, as a doctor lifted the blanket to reveal Maria’s injured foot, Harry asked, “Does she mind showing us?” The intervention did stand out for its sensitivity. Commenting on the moment in The Independent, Lydia Spencer-Elliott noted the similarity to the late Princess of Wales’s approach to charity work. “Harry intervened as Maria’s doctor lifted the 14-year-old’s blanket to show her badly injured foot to the bedside crowd, demonstrating the signature care and compassion that characterized the charity visits of his late mother, Princess Diana,” she wrote, adding that “Maria didn’t mind.”
Hospital staff were equally effusive. Dr. Hamzeh Odeh, the emergency department manager, described the impact of the visit on both patients and medical teams. “They have a very beautiful touch of humanity, and it affects us,” he said. “We take it as appreciation from them to come and say ‘thank you’ for our work – it’s like a very good push forward.” The Jordan trip forms part of the Sussexes’ broader support for initiatives that facilitate the medical evacuation and treatment of children affected by the Gaza conflict.
Spencer-Elliott also put together the Sussexes’ hospital visit with scenes unfolding back in Britain. “When Kate and William are recovering from the BAFTAs (please, simply imagine them in the same room as Kylie Jenner). Meanwhile, King Charles was last seen sitting front row – next to Stella McCartney – at Tolu Coker’s London Fashion Week show, holding up silk scarves emblazoned with the name of his sustainability charter, Terra Carta,” she wrote.
Spencer-Elliott’s point was that, amid a period of reputational strain for the monarchy, senior royals appeared to be leaning into high-profile cultural events, while Harry was positioning himself around the Invictus Games — the international sporting event he founded for wounded veterans. She continued, “At a very serious time, it seems that the Windsors are opting to wholeheartedly embrace the entertainment industry, while Harry will return to the UK this summer to mark the one-year countdown to the Invictus Games. At this difficult time for the institution, they are both harnessing the opportunity to remind us of their staying power.”
For Spencer-Elliott, the Jordan visit served a dual purpose. “In their bid to learn more about the humanitarian effort for Syrians and Palestinians in Jordan, the Hollywood-leaning former royals have offered an antidote to the dark side of the monarchy that hit the headlines last week, as well as somewhat successfully distancing themselves from the accusations of navel-gazing that marred them following the release of their numerous Netflix projects,” she wrote.
