Meghan Markle’s father has been rushed to hospital after suffering a suspected stroke.
Thomas Markle was meant to be preparing to fly to Britain this week, where he was expected to attempt to reunite with his estranged famous daughter and meet her husband Prince Harry.
The Duchess of Sussex’s sister, Samantha, alluded to her father suffering health issues as a result of the “torture” of him by Meghan.
“We ask for privacy for the family, for his health and wellbeing,” she told MailOnline on Wednesday morning.
“He just needs peace and rest… It’s a travesty how much he’s been tortured and how much he’s had to go through thanks to my sister’s disregard the past few years. That is unforgivable.”
Mr Markle had reportedly been subjected to trolling online, with the stress of the spike in abuse in recent weeks causing his blood pressure to rise.
He had previously suffered two heart attacks, the health scares so severe that he was forced to miss Harry and Meghan’s 2018 wedding.
MailOnline reporter Dan Wootton said he had been communicating with Mr Markle and was going to host him during his London visit.
“Despite his ongoing health issues, Thomas had been determined to visit the UK for the first time to pay his respects for the Queen,” Wootton wrote in an article published online on Wednesday morning.
“He intended to visit Windsor Castle for the first time, the location where he was due to walk his daughter down the aisle during her nuptials before he suffered a heart attack that saw him unable to travel.
“Thomas also remained hopeful that his presence in London would finally see a reunion between himself and his daughter – and a first meeting with his son-in-law Prince Harry.”
He said Samantha Markle had noticed her father was losing his speech during a phone call on Monday night.
Mr Markle was rushed to hospital in Tijuana, Mexico, before being taken across the border to a Californian hospital.
Photographs showed Mr Markle taken from his Mexico home wearing an oxygen mask as he was loaded on a stretcher.
