Britain's Prince Harry expressed "great sadness" over his decision to step down from royal duties.
"Our hope was to continue serving the queen, the Commonwealth and my military associations without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible," Harry said in his first public statement.
"I've accepted this knowing it doesn't change who I am, or how committed I am. But I hope that helps you understand what it had come to, that I would step back from all I have ever known to take a step forward into what I hope can be a more peaceful life.
"The decision that I have made for my wife and I to step back is not one I made lightly," he said. "It was so many months of talks after so many years of challenges. And I know I haven't always gotten it right, but as far as this goes, there really was no other option."
In a speech to the Sentebale charity on Sunday, a clearly upset Harry said it has brought him "great sadness" and that there was "really no other option".
"The UK is my home and a place that I love. That will never change," he said.
Israeli raids targeting several areas across Lebanon on Tuesday killed 31 people and wounded 40 others, Lebanon's health ministry said, in one of the heaviest days of bombing in weeks.
Israel said on Wednesday it had killed Hamas's newly appointed armed wing chief in Gaza, days after it killed his predecessor, while intensifying military pressure in Gaza and expanding operations in Lebanon.
Syria's transitional leadership has located remnants of former President Bashar al-Assad's clandestine chemical weapons programme, including raw materials and munitions similar to those used to carry out deadly gas attacks during the country's long-running civil war.
A chemical tank imploded and ruptured at a Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in the US state of Washington on Tuesday, resulting in one death and nine injuries, while nine others remained unaccounted for as of Tuesday night, authorities said.