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Prince Harry will go to Iraq: army chief
Prince Harry will go to Iraq: army chief
Tuesday May 01, 2007
Prince Harry will serve in Iraq with his regiment, the head of the British army said Monday, despite fears that insurgents could target the third in line to the throne.
"I have taken the decision as chief of general staff. It's my decision as chief of general staff. I have full command of everyone in the army, including Prince Harry," General Sir Richard Dannatt said in a statement.
Dannatt said the decision had been taken after the "widest possible consultation" but added that he could yet change his mind if circumstances changed.
"I will of course keep that decision continually under review and if circumstances are such that I change that decision, I will make a further statement," he told Sky News.
Speculation has been rife about Harry's deployment with the Blues and Royals regiment since the decision to send him was announced in February. The regiment was expected to begin its six-month tour of duty in May.
British media have said the 22-year-old second lieutenant -- or Cornet Wales as he is known in the Blues and Royals -- could be pulled from the front line because of the threat of kidnap or death and his presence could put comrades in extra danger.
Harry, second son the Prince Charles and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, will be responsible for 11 soldiers and four Scimitar reconnaissance vehicles.
A commander of Iraq's biggest Shiite Muslim militia, Abu Mujtaba, told The Guardian daily in comments published over the weekend that insurgents would try and kidnap the prince when he gets to Iraq.
He said that the militia had "a special unit that would work to track him down, with informants inside the bases."
Any decision to pull him out is likely to infuriate the prince, who has said there was "no way" he would train to become an officer but do nothing while his soldiers fought.
An unnamed regiment source in the Household Cavalry, of which the Blues and Royals is part, told the domestic Press Association news agency last week that Harry would resign if he is not allowed to go.
But friends of the prince told the BBC that while he would be "very disappointed" if he was barred from going, he would stay with the Army.
April has been one of the deadliest months for British forces in Iraq since the US-led invasion of March 2003. To date 12 lives have been lost, including a corporal doing Harry's armoured reconnaissance troop leader job.
Were he to serve in Iraq, Harry would become the first British royal to see active service since his uncle Prince Andrew flew helicopters in the 1982 Falklands War with Argentina.
His brother William, 24, and second-in-line to the throne, is also an officer in the Blues and Royals.
He has talked in the past about his intention to fight in conflict zones but is unlikely to see front-line military action, given his status as a future monarch.
Britain has about 7,100 troops in Iraq, most of whom are in Basra and surrounding areas, but the government is planning to withdraw about 1,600 this year.
AFP
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