In the UK, Queen Elizabeth II has taken military affiliations and royal patronages away from Prince Andrew over a coming trial in the US, where a woman accuses him of sexual assault against her, when she was 17 years old, British news portal The Guardian reports.
The Buckingham Palace of the British royal family said in a statement on Thursday, January 13 speaking about the Queen’s son as the Duke of York: «With the Queen’s approval and agreement, the Duke of York’s military affiliations and royal patronages have been returned to the Queen. The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen».
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The move means Prince Andrew has been completely removed from official royal life as he prepares to fight a civil lawsuit brought by American woman Virginia Giuffre. Earlier in January, a US judge rejected Prince Andrew’s attempt to have the case against him dismissed.
Giuffre, now 38, says she was forced into sex at 17 with the duke by associates of his, the late American sex offender and financier, Jeffrey Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell, the British media heiress, who was convicted in New York in December of sex-trafficking girls for Epstein. Prince Andrew denies the allegations against him.
British Queen distances herself from Prince Andrew blamed for underage sex assault
