Prince Harry, favorite war widow catch up during his visit to Sydney

98-year-old gives him big hug, meets Meghan

SYDNEY — There’s clearly a special bond between Prince Harry and a 98-year-old war widow who gave him a warm hug Tuesday when they met — again — in Sydney.

It’s a regular catch-up. The widow, Daphne Dunne, tries to cross the prince’s path whenever he comes to Australia.

It’s a natural fit for Harry, who has made championing the cause of veterans one of his principal causes.

He first noted Dunne when he visited Sydney in 2015 and saw that she was wearing a Victoria Cross.

That’s a significant award that wouldn’t escape Harry’s eye. It is awarded to military personnel who show gallantry “in the presence of the enemy” and can be awarded posthumously.

It is one of the highest honors that can be bestowed by the British monarch, and Dunne told Harry it had been awarded posthumously to her first husband after he died in Papua New Guinea during World War II.

Harry and Dunne caught sight of each other outside the Opera House during his visit Tuesday. They hugged and chatted, and Harry introduced her to his pregnant wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex.

“Oh my goodness, is this Daphne?” Meghan asked.

Dunne later said Meghan claimed to have heard all about her.

“I wished them well with the baby on the way and said this is what Harry has been waiting for for so long,” said Dunne.

Saeed Khan / AFP/Getty Images Britain’s Prince Harry hugs Daphne Dunne, 98, on Tuesday in Sydney. He first met Dunne on a 2015 visit and noted she was wearing a Victoria Cross given posthumously to her husband, who died in World War II.

Dean Lewins / Associated Press Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, meet Ruby, a mother koala at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo.