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Subject: From the incredible Op-for: Prince Harry off to the front
Panther    2/20/2007 8:47:28 PM
http://op-for.com/2007/02/prince_harry_to_the_front.html#comments I'm sure it's of no surprise to most Brits. But to most Americans, their last probable memory of the prince was back shortly after diana died! Well the boy prince has really grown up to be a real man that diana would be extremely proud of if she were still alive with us today! If i'm allowed, i would like to offer a sincere prayer or wish for his safe return to his homeland! G*dspeed Harry and hoping for your safe return!
 
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flamingknives       2/21/2007 6:27:39 PM
I hardly think that anyone would object.
 
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AdamB       2/22/2007 1:00:43 PM

Happy Prince Harry is off to war

22nd February 2007


Prince Harry was said to be "over the moon" as it was announced he is to serve in Iraq.

The Ministry of Defence confirmed that the third in line to the throne will be sent to the war zone with his men in the Blues and Royals this year.

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/02_02/harryDM260107_468x575.jpg" width=468 border=1>

 

But the decision has raised concerns for his safety because of his "celebrity" status.

Experts say Harry, 22, will be the "No.1 target" for insurgents as someone whose face is known around the world.

Defence sources said Harry would be treated "like any other soldier in his regiment" and he would be upset at suggestions he would get special protection.

 

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/02_02/PrinceHarry93PA_468x368.jpg" width=468 border=1> 

Harry, pictured here in 1993, has always wanted to serve in the British Army

 

 

 

But because of his royal status military chiefs are understood to have put in place detailed plans.

Sources say a team of SAS men will be on stand-by to shadow the prince - ready to intervene if necessary. A member of the special forces said: "A team has been preparing for this announcement.

"The prince himself may not even be aware of it. He will not be stopped from fulfilling his full military role. But it would be a dereliction of duty for military chiefs not to be prepared for the worst and hand the insurgents a chance to make a devastating impact.

"A full recce has been carried out. We don't want to take any chances."

One fear is of Harry being kidnapped by al Qaeda and paraded on the internet in a devastating publicity coup. There is also concern that Iranian-backed Shia insurgents would try to kill him.

The prince is a cornet, equivalent of second lieutenant, in the Household Cavalry. He will become the first member of the royal family to serve in a war since his uncle Prince Andrew flew helicopters in the Falklands 25 years ago.

Harry has made it clear since joining the Army that he wants to serve his country "just like any other soldier".

He had told friends that he would quit the Army if he was not allowed to serve with his fellow soldiers in Iraq.

Defence Secretary Des Browne told MPs which military units will be sent to Iraq in April as part of a long-planned rotation of troops.

Despite the timing of his posting, it is understood that Harry will be allowed home twice to attend a memorial service and pop concert for Princess Diana this summer.

Mr Browne's announcement came a day after Tony Blair revealed that the number of Britain's troops in Iraq will be reduced from 7,100 to 5,500 as soon as security responsibilities are handed over to local forces.

This batch of 1,600 troops could be home in the next few months.

The prince's unit can expect a six-month tour of duty in southern Iraq. The squadron is expected to be deployed as part of a Household Cavalry detachment when 1 Mechanised Brigade replaces 19 Light Brigade.

Defence experts said the decision to send Harry was part of the Army's "business as usual" ethos. He graduated from Sandhurst last April and qualified as an armoured reconnaissance troop leader in October.

Known as "Troop Commander Wales" in his regiment, he is trained to command 11 soldiers and four Scimitar armoured vehicles. After becoming an officer he said he wanted to see action, adding: "There's no way I'm going to put myself through Sandhurst, and then sit on my arse back home while my boys are out fighting for their country."

As part of the reduction in UK troop numbers announced on Wednesday, British forces are expected to leave Basra. But a substantial battlegroup will remain based at the air station outside the city.

The force will be backed up by two infantry battalions and will be on

 
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The Lizard King       2/22/2007 1:21:41 PM
If he is KIA, I think Anti-American sentiments will be rather high...
 
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flamingknives       2/22/2007 1:44:24 PM
Only if the Americans are responsible.
 
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Yimmy       2/22/2007 2:11:28 PM

Only if the Americans are responsible.


Now, that would be something of a disaster.
 
 
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The Lizard King       2/22/2007 2:21:08 PM
Lets not create any self-fulfilling prophecies here…
 
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StudentofConflict       2/23/2007 3:45:06 AM
If he died in action against the enemy, it'd be fine. A friendly fire incident wouldn't go down too well admittedly...
 
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AdamB       2/23/2007 2:22:02 PM
Isn't it sick that this guy fights for his country - like every other British soldier - and all people can do is attack him?
 
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AdamB       2/23/2007 2:22:32 PM
Prince Harry in the hell zone


http://images.thesun.co.uk/picture/0,,2007081591,00.jpg" border=0>
Courageous ... the prince will serve in lawless area where 23 Brits have died. The above graphic shows the number of troops each Coalition member has in Iraq and where they are situtated. Despite the possibility that he may one day become King Henry IX, he will be laying his life on the line for less than the national minimum wage.

RELATED STORIEShttp://images.thesun.co.uk/images/trans.gif" border=0>
http://images.thesun.co.uk/images/trans.gif" border=0>


http://images.thesun.co.uk/images/trans.gif" border=0>http://images.thesun.co.uk/images/trans.gif" border=0>By TOM NEWTON DUNN

Defence Editor

FEBRUARY 23, 2007

PRINCE Harry’s tour of duty in Iraq will take him to a hell zone branded “Mad Max land”, The Sun can reveal.


Harry, 22, is destined for Maysan Province — the most dangerous posting in the UK-controlled south.

Its lawless tribesmen are said to operate like the ultra-violent gangs of Mel Gibson’s cult 1979 movie.

A total of 23 British servicemen have been killed in Maysan in the past 3½ years. In the town of Majar al-Kabir, six Red Caps were butchered in cold blood by a seething mob in June 2003.

A year later in provincial capital Al Amarah, Warrior driver Private Johnson Beharry earned the first Victoria Cross in 22 years when he saved his platoon of 30 by charging down an ambush.

Brit soldiers in Maysan have had to fight running battles for months against Iranian-backed Shia Muslim extremists loyal to rogue cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Cornet Wales — as Harry is known — will lead a troop of 11 men from his Household Cavalry Regiment patrolling the badlands hotspot in Scimitar armoured vehicles.


http://images.thesun.co.uk/picture/0,,2007081592,00.jpg" border=0>
From tank boy to real McCoy ... Harry aged eight, left, now, centre, and in 1993, right


A senior military source said last night: “Harry’s certainly jumping in at the deep end with Maysan. It’s well and truly Mad Max land. It’s like the land the world forgot up there.

“There’s a popular story about two of its tribes duelling over the ownership of a cow.

They went home to get their heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft weapons and by the end of the day, ten were dead and 40 wounded. It sums the place up.

“It might be quite exciting if it’s your first operational tour.

But most blokes groan when they hear that’s their posting. Good luck to him.”

Only a week ago 30 troops cheated death in Maysan when their Hercules plane was blown up on landing by a suspected hidden bomb.

The province — the size of Northern Ireland — is the most savage and poorest of Iraq’s 18 provinces. It is also the hottest in the UK zone, hitting a blistering 60°C in summer.

Route 6, which links Baghdad with British-run Basra, is a major terrorist smuggling highway running through Maysan. It is frequently booby-trapped with roadside bombs in a bid to kill passing British patrols.

The Sun knows exactly what task lies ahead for Harry and his men. But the MoD has asked us not to report it for fear it will help the enemy.

Despite the hardship he faces on the six-month tour, the prince is said by pals to be “over the moon” at being sent.

One source at the Windsor-based Household Cavalry Regiment said: “It’s a good day for us. It’s being seen as the HCR are going to war with Harry but really it should be the other way round. He’s coming with us because his commanding officer picked him.”

On his 21st birthday Harry said: “There’s no way I’m going to put myself through Sandhurst and then s
 
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Herc the Merc    Great this is turning into a major social event   2/23/2007 2:32:46 PM
Will the papparazzi follow. If the Coalition of the willing cannot stop the civil war; I am sure the British press corp following this lad will positively dig up some juicy stories of Sadr and his nocturnal activities. I see an Iraqi surrender soon. The Star can do more damage than the British soldier(?lol).
 
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