Meghan Markle returns to Instagram and posts New Year's video

Meghan Markle is starting the new year with her first Instagram account since 2020.

The Associated Press confirmed on Wednesday that @meghan belongs to the Duchess of Sussex.

Her first post is a black-and-white video of herself at the beach, wearing white and drawing 2025 in the sand on an overcast day.

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The account already has more than 700,000 followers.

Markle and Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, were married in 2018, and were initially part of @KensingtonRoyal, which also included Harry’s brother, Prince William, and his wife, Kate, the Princess of Wales.

But a year later, Meghan and Harry launched their own account, @SussexRoyal, a sign of their growing distance from the royal family.

Meghan Markle has set up @meghan on Instagram and already has more than 600,000 followers. (AP PHOTO) Credit: AAP

@SussexRoyal was discontinued in 2020, about the time that Meghan and Harry announced they were stepping back from their official roles.

Markle, who had a popular Instagram account when she was best known for her role in Suits, had indicated she would return.

In a 2022 interview with New York Magazine’s The Cut, she confided: “Do you want to know a secret? I’m getting back … on Instagram.”

At other times, she sounded reluctant to return to Instagram, citing concerns about harassment. In 2023, she and Harry urged social media platforms to strengthen content-moderation policies, saying that some apps could damage the mental health of young people.