A day after French magazine, Closer, published topless photographs of Britain's Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton, two publications in Europe have decided to follow suite, ABC News reported.
According to ABC News, the Irish Daily Star, a tabloid newspaper in Ireland, and Italian gossip magazine Chi decided on Saturday to publish the controversial photographs. The British royal family has taken swift legal action against Closer magazine, but no decision has been made on the other publications.
ABC News reported that Northern and Shell, one of the joint-publishers of the Irish Daily Star, have apologized for the newspaper's decision to publish the topless photographs and "very much regret the distress it has caused."
The Irish newspaper's future was put in doubt, the Telegraph reported, after Northern and Shell owner Richard Desmond announced he was halting a deal to run the newspaper with Ireland's Independent News & Media. According to the Telegraph, Independent News & Media has also critized the paper's decision. A spokeswoman for St. James Palace told the Telegraph, "There can be no motivation for this action other than greed."
Closer magazine published a five-page spread of the Duchess while on vacation and sunbathing in a private chateau in the south of France last week.
St. James Palace release a statement on Friday after the photos were published saying, "Their Royal Highnesses have been hugely saddened to learn that a French publication and a photographer have invaded their privacy in such a grotesque and totally unjustifiable manner. The incident is reminiscent of the worst excesses of the press and paparazzi during the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, and all the more upsetting to The Duke and Duchess for being so."
The royal couple has started "legal proceedings for breach of privacy" against the publishers, the Palace also announced. According to ABC News, the magazine has defended their decision to publish the photos, saying the photos would only appear in the French edition and that they were not degrading.
Prince William and his wife, Kate, are currently participating in a royal tour of South Asia to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. The scandalous photos of the Duchess come one month after racy naked photos of Prince Harry in Las Vegas were published in the United States.