Army chief says Prince Harry will go to Iraq

LONDON (AFP) wrote: - Insurgents in
Iraq will seek to kidnap Prince Harry when the army sends him there, a commander of Iraq's biggest Shiite Muslim militia, the Mahdi Army, said in remarks published Saturday.
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"One of our aims is to capture Harry, we have people inside the British bases to inform us on when he will arrive," Abu Mujtaba, a commander in the southern city of Basra, told The Guardian.

"We have a special unit that would work to track him down, with informants inside the bases," according to the commander of the militia led by radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, quoted by the newspaper.

"Not only us, the Mahdi army, that will try to capture him, but every person who hates the British and the Americans will try to get him," he was quoted as saying.

"All the mujahedeen in Iraq, the Al-Qaeda, the Iranians all will try to get him," he was quoted as saying.

The Guardian said it had no independent evidence to back up his claims that militias have infiltrated British bases, or set up a unit to kidnap Prince Harry, who is third in line to the throne.

The newspaper quoted British defence sources as denouncing the commander's remarks as "blatant propaganda."

Defence officials said Thursday that Britain's army chiefs are reviewing plans to send Prince Harry to Iraq amid fears he could be targeted, but friends downplayed warnings he may quit if prevented from going.

Is he a target ? or the bait ?

Death Target.

At least the brits have the balls to send one of their own to the front line. No way Bush would send his daughters.


Goodbye Callisto & Skaði, Hello Ishara:
2022 Kia Stinger GT2 AWD
The only thing every single person from every single walk of life on earth can truly say
they have in common is that their country is run by a bunch of fargin iceholes.

Funny that was one of my first thought's Keeper ..

it's his choice so let him go, why show favoritism just because
he has royal blood, that's a symbol of, well, nothing really.
unless your a fan of useless English Gossip..

My next thought afterwards was .. what a tasty piece of
cheese to hang out there for the rats to snack
on. Trap something running around all Jihadical & $hit,
using Harry as bait might not go over to well
with his fan base though ... " waaaaaaaaaa "

Honestly though i think his gonna get some heavy babysitting,
that does not sit well with me, if it's gonna cost other soldiers there lives.
we shall see.

I hope he does not get killed or kidnapped, not because I care for the brit but becasue I know we will never heard the end of it.

Yeah, well being sent in frontline action or just in Iraq is two different things. If they keep him on base peeling potatoes all the time it's not all that dangerous. Another thing too, if I was stationed in Iraq and Harry was in my unit my first words to him would be "You're a brave man, now stay the hell away from me!" because I'd rather not walk around with a large target/dead man too close.

EzTrip wrote:
Is he a target ? or the bait ?

my guess is both. im sure there are even more political plots in britain due to everyone wanting to be "king". i would say some factions are using him as bait, hoping to get him killed so they move up the list. the other factions are probably trying to make it look good by sending him there, making him a "war hero", etc.

either way im sure he will have half of the british navy around him at all times. and i seriously doubt that there are many, if any, insiders supporting the iraqis in trying to get harry kidnapped or killed.

Quote:


LONDON, England (CNN) -- Britain's Prince Harry will not serve in Iraq as a troop commander because of "a number of specific threats" against him, the UK's top general says.

A spokesperson for the 22-year-old prince says he is "very disappointed" by the decision.

Chief of the general staff Sir Richard Dannatt said Wednesday: "I have decided today that Prince Harry will not deploy as a troop commander with his squadron.

"I have come to this final decision following a further and wide round of consultation, including a visit to Iraq by myself at the end of last week," Dannatt said

"There have been a number of specific threats, some reported and some not reported. These threats exposed him and those around him to a degree of risk I considered unacceptable," he said.

Wednesday's announcement reverses a statement made in February by the Ministry of Defence and the royal family, which said that Harry would be sent to Iraq with his regiment.

Dannatt commended the prince on his determination.

"Let me also make quite clear that as a professional soldier, Prince Harry will be extremely disappointed.

"He has proved himself both at Sandhurst and in command of his troop during their training. I commend him for his determination and his undoubted talent -- and I do not say that lightly. His soldiers will miss his leadership in Iraq, although I know his commanding officer will provide a highly capable substitute troop leader."

A statement issued by a spokesperson for the prince said: "Prince Harry is very disappointed that he will not be able to go to Iraq with his troop on this deployment, as he had hoped. He fully understands and accepts General Dannatt's difficult decision, and remains committed to his army career. Prince Harry's thoughts are with his troop and the rest of the Battle Group in Iraq."

Harry would have led a troop of 12 men in four Scimitar armored reconnaissance vehicles, each with a crew of three, in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.

He is a 2006 graduate of Britain's prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and has been actively seeking the posting in Iraq.

Harry's older brother William -- while also a military officer -- is not eligible for combat service because he is the second in line to the British crown.

Harry has repeatedly said that he wants to be deployed with his men, but ministry officials have expressed concern that he could become a target for Iraqi insurgents, endangering himself and those serving under him.

Royal commentator Robert Jobson told CNN that it would be a "disaster" for the British Army if Harry was targeted by militants.

Jobson said he did not believe Harry would quit the army, despite being kept out of Iraq.

Harry would have been the first member of the British royal family to serve in a war zone since his uncle, Prince Andrew, flew as a helicopter pilot in the Falklands conflict with Argentina in 1982, Associated Press reported.

Whoduthunk it.

[quote=Keeper of the Light™]At least the brits have the balls to send one of their own to the front line. No way Bush would send his daughters. It'd mean that Gilligan's daughters would have been in the military... The last Bush to actually serve in the regular military (let alone in a time of war) is GHW Bush.

Either way, it would have been a bad decision to send him out there, AFTER announcing it. I don't doubt his sincerity and his will to serve (Service to Queen and Country in Britain is actually expected of the Male Royals) but this is one case where he would have been a specific target, and would have not only jeopardized his life, but those of his unit mates moreso than other units. The fact that he wants to be in Iraq shows that he holds duty over political expediency, he doesn't have to serve in combat by any means.






Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.

well now theyve annpounced that due to the threats on him directly and the troops he would be with, hes staying home. guess i can see the logic...fending off kidnap attemts would keep the rest of his group from doing whatever it is they are supposed to be doing over there. but at the same time its gotta suck for him...one of the few, if not the only, time a royal has been refused the honor of leading troops into battle.


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