Prince Harry flies to Nigerian no go zone famed for armed bandits and kidnappers but leaves Meghan 120 miles behind him after couple enjoyed action packed rockstar welcome to country on their ‘quasi royal tour

Prince Harry traveled alone as he visited a military hospital in Kaduna, a region dubbed a no-go zone by the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office, MailOnline can reveal.

Harry, who has questioned his own safety in Britain, flew to hospital about 125 miles northwest of Abuja and apologized upon his arrival for leaving Meghan behind in the West African country’s capital.

After being welcomed by dancers on a red carpet, Harry told the crowd: ‘I’m sorry I didn’t bring my wife.

“The focus here in Kaduna is on the wounded, injured and sick men and women serving in the Nigerian Armed Forces and protecting people.”

Sources told the Mail that Meghan had a private meeting and would meet Harry on his return later on Friday.

Kaduna is one of the most dangerous states in the country, with nearly 2,000 kidnappings recorded in 2020, as well as reports of sexual violence, including rape.

The British Foreign Office advises against all travel to the area, which is partly ruled by armed bandits.

Before he left, Harry was given two paintings: one of him and his late mother Princess Diana and one of him and his wife Meghan.

He was then asked to put on another gift: an outfit consisting of a traditional vest and a ‘big dress’, which he needed to get over his head.

And with a slightly bewildered look, he followed the suggestion to also put on a hula cap.

Harry toured six wards and saw row after row of young men recovering from their injuries. Many had been shot, ambushed by Boko Haram or lost limbs due to explosions.

He shook hands with about fifty former soldiers and told them, “You’re getting better, get back on your feet.”

Halfway through, he was introduced to 2nd Lieutenant Princess Owowoh, 23, who had recently graduated from Sandhurst Military Academy, where Harry was training to become an army officer.

Harry had written to her after hearing her story. “He wrote to congratulate me and say they were coming to Nigeria and about the Invictus Games Foundation,” she said.

‘The Invictus Games give hope to the soldiers. It encourages them to move toward a goal, to achieve something new.”

However, not everyone was happy with the Sussexes’ ‘quasi-royal’ tour of the country, with some questioning how Harry could visit such high-risk zones when he has previously raised concerns about his safety at home.

Former royal protection officer Ken Wharfe, who accompanied the late Princess of Wales and the king to Nigeria in the early 1990s, told MailOnline that the trip exposed Harry’s “hypocrisy”.

He said: ‘I went to Nigeria with Harry’s mother and father and it was quite lawless at the time and so you have to wonder why he went there when he says the safety of his wife and children comes first.

‘If the situation requires that level of protection you have to wonder why he is there and if he says he feels unsafe in London when he has all that security in London you wonder if there is any point in to go.

‘He’s going to a high-risk country and I’m sure he will be taken care of, but he is a high-level target and one that would certainly appeal to anyone who wants him to make a dramatic impact deliver.’

Harry and Meghan have a four-person security team for their 72-hour visit to Nigeria, which they paid for themselves, as well as extra protection from the West African country.

Their escort consisted of ten army vehicles, two ambulances and three Toyota pickups with mounted machine guns.

While in Abuja, the couple visited Lightway Academy university, which receives support from their Archewell Foundation to educate and train young girls affected by conflict in Nigeria.

Kicking off an inaugural mental health summit organized by local nonprofit Geanco, which partners with their foundation, the couple was greeted by a dance troupe and a crowd of enthusiastic students and teachers.

They will also visit non-governmental organizations they support in Abuja and Lagos and attend basketball and volleyball matches.

Meghan will also co-host an event on women in leadership with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director general of the World Trade Organization, according to their spokesperson Charlie Gipson.

Prince Harry flies to Nigeria’s no-go zone, famous for armed bandits and kidnappers, but leaves Meghan 120 miles behind after couple enjoyed action-packed rockstar ‘welcome to country’ during their ‘quasi-royal tour’