Court records have revealed a stunning development in the long-running rift at Sentebale, the African youth-focused charity once co-chaired by Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex: the organization itself has launched a defamation suit against the royal and a former fellow trustee.
The case, which was formally filed with UK courts on March 24, names Prince Harry and Mark Dyer, another ex-trustee of the organization, as defendants, with the legal claim categorized as covering defamation through both libel and slander. No additional supporting court documents have been made public as of yet, and neither representatives for Prince Harry nor Sentebale’s current leadership have issued any further comment clarifying the specific details behind the legal action.
The conflict that led to this lawsuit stretches back months, rooted in a bitter power struggle over the charity’s strategic and operational management. Prince Harry exited Sentebale alongside his co-founder, Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, and a group of aligned trustees in March 2025, following heated disagreements with Sophie Chandauka, the charity’s sitting chair. The acrimony of the split played out largely in public view, prompting a formal regulatory probe by the UK Charity Commission.
That investigation ultimately concluded that fault for the breakdown lay with all parties involved. The regulator also issued sharp criticism over the decision to air internal disputes openly, noting that the public conflict had caused measurable harm to Sentebale’s mission and reputation.
Founded in 2006 by Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso, Sentebale operates across Lesotho and Botswana, with a core mission to advance the health, mental wellbeing, and life outcomes for vulnerable young people across southern Africa, particularly those living with HIV and AIDS. The organization has drawn high-profile royal and celebrity support for nearly two decades, making this internal split and subsequent lawsuit an extraordinary turn of events for a charity focused on impactful on-the-ground development work.