MEGHAN Markle has made a pointed show of support for Prince Harry after he criticised Donald Trump over insulting Afghanistan comments.
She posted a series of pictures to social media featuring her husband in military service, after Trump claimed Nato allies had dodged the front lines.
Harry spent 10 years in the British Army, during which he served two front-line tours in Afghanistan.
Meghan posted seven photos to her Instagram story, including one of her husband serving in Afghanistan.
The posts were a notable show of support for Harry, coming just hours after he released an impassioned statement defending British troops.
Harry had insisted that British troops “deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect”.
This came following Trump’s remarks on Thursday that Nato troops had been stationed “a little off the front lines”.
Veterans, relatives and politicians have come out to decry the president’s comments, which they said undermined the immense sacrifices made by courageous British troops.
“In 2001, Nato invoked Article 5 for the first—and only—time in history,” Harry said.
“It meant that every allied nation was obliged to stand with the United States in Afghanistan, in pursuit of our shared security. Allies answered that call.
“I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there. The United Kingdom alone had 457 service personnel killed.
“Thousands of lives were changed forever. Mothers and fathers buried sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent. Families are left carrying the cost.
“Those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect, as we all remain united and loyal to the defence of diplomacy and peace.”
The other images Meghan posted were taken during the Invictus Games, which Harry set up in 2014.
The Invictus Games is an international sporting event for wounded, injured and sick armed forces personnel, serving or veteran.
Athletes compete in different sports, helping support their physical and mental health.
One photo featured Harry kneeling alongside Royal Marine hero Mark Ormrod at the 2017 games.
Mark lost his legs and right arm when he stepped on an IED in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, on Christmas Eve in 2007.
Prince Harry labelled Mark a “superhero” after meeting him during recovery in 2008.
They remained friends, and the former Royal Marine was seated with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the 2023 Games.
Despite sacrifices like Mark’s and the 457 brave Brits who died in Afghanistan, the president insulted this contribution in an interview on Fox News on Thursday.
“They’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines,” he said.
Trump added he was “not sure” Nato would support the US “if we ever needed them”.
George Cross winner and Iraq war veteran Chris Finney told The Sun he felt “deeply let down” by Trump’s comments.
Injured in a friendly fire incident by US troops in Iraq in 2003, he said: “I carry a piece of America with me everywhere I go.
“It is a reminder of that awful day. It is proof that what Donald Trump said is historically, factually, totally untrue.
Chris added Trump had “belittled the sacrifice of friends who came back without limbs, or with physical and emotional scars”.
Prince Harry was deployed to Afghanistan twice during his decade-long military career.
His first outing lasted only 10 weeks in 2008, before he had to be evacuated when media reports revealed his location.
The young prince had completed his training in 2006 and was made second lieutenant in a regiment of the Household Cavalry of the British Army.
He further trained as a joint terminal attack controller for the RAF in 2007, before becoming an Apache helicopter pilot.
The Duke’s second Afghanistan deployment came in 2012, when he served as a Apache helicopter co-pilot and gunner.
In his biography Spare, he revealed that he had killed 25 Taliban fighters while there: “It wasn’t a statistic that filled me with pride but nor did it make me ashamed”.
Downing Street also offered a defence of the UK’s contribution to Nato involvement in Afghanistan.
A spokesman said: “The President was wrong to diminish the role of Nato troops, including British forces, in Afghanistan.
“Following the 9/11 attacks on the US, Article 5 of the Nato treaty was invoked for the first time, and British forces served alongside American and other allied troops in sustained combat operations.
“Four hundred and fifty seven British service personnel lost their lives in Afghanistan, and many more were wounded.
“Many hundreds suffered life changing injuries from their service alongside the US and our allies in Afghanistan, their sacrifice and that of other Nato forces was made in the service of collective security and in response to an attack on our ally.
“We are incredibly proud of our armed forces and their service and sacrifice will never be forgotten.”
