Prince Harry Reunites With Minefield Survivor Who Met Princess Diana 22 Years Ago

Prince Harry on Friday reunited with Sandra Tigica, a minefield survivor who famously met Princess Diana during her visit to Angola in 1997.

Diana brought global attention to the issue of landmines when she walked through a cleared path in a live minefield in Huambo. During her trip, the Princess of Wales met Tigica, who was 13 at the time.

The two were pictured together in a widely-seen photograph, seated under a tree at an orthopedic workshop in Luanda. 

Harry reunited with Tigica, now a mother in her late 30s, on Friday. The Duke of Sussex had previously been introduced to Tigica; the two met at an event honoring Diana in London in 2007.

“You still look as young as you did in those pictures, all those years ago,” Harry told Tigica on Friday, according to video taken by The Sun.

He later asked, “Are you happy with the progress that has been made since then … with the clearing of minefields?”

“Yes, I’m very happy with all the work that took place, and I’m very happy to see that you’re following her footsteps,” Tigica responded via an English-speaking translator. 

During his visit to Angola, which is part of his royal tour, the Duke of Sussex retraced his mother’s footsteps, walking the same path that Diana did 22 years ago, on what is now a completely transformed street. 

“The Duke was able to walk the same path, but now rather than walking amongst mines, he was able to walk among a bustling community with schools, colleges and small businesses,” a post’s caption on the Sussex Royal Instagram page read.

Harry also joined the HALO Trust, a landmine clearance organization, on a walk through a de-mining field in Dirico, Angola. The 35-year-old royal wore protective body armor and headgear similar to what Diana wore in Huambo over two decades ago. 

The Duke of Sussex called the mines, left during Angola’s civil war, “an unhealed scar of war,” according to The New York Times.