Britain's Princess Catherine, Princess of Wales, was seen in public on Monday for the first time since undergoing abdominal surgery in mid-January, according to photos published by the American website TMZ.
The 42-year-old princess and her husband, Prince William, heir to the British throne, have been recovering mainly at their home in Windsor, west of London, since leaving the hospital on January 29.
Photos published by TMZ showed Kate wearing sunglasses while driving a car, and the celebrity news site said they were taken on Monday near Windsor Castle.
British media outlets, including the Daily Mail and The Sun, chose not to publish the images.
“We are not running them out of respect for her privacy while she recovers from her operation in the timetable we have given her,” Chris Ship, royal news editor at ITV News, previously said on Twitter.
This sighting comes at a time when social media was full of conspiracy theories about the absence of the famous hard-working and obedient princess from the limelight.
The speculation came despite Kensington Palace clearly stating at the time of her surgery that she was “unlikely to return to her public duties until after Easter.”
She also said the surgery had nothing to do with cancer.
Last week, William withdrew from attending a memorial service, citing a “personal matter” and sparking more rumours.
Kensington Palace declined to give further details about the last-minute withdrawal, but said Kate was still “doing well.”
Kate's admission to hospital came almost simultaneously with the announcement that William's father, King Charles, had gone in for surgery for a benign prostate condition and was diagnosed with an unrelated cancer.
The 75-year-old king also withdrew from his public duties during his treatment, although he attended church services and held his weekly meeting with the prime minister.
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