Prince Harry pulled out of Afghanistan
According to news.yahoo.com, Prince Harry ended his secret tour of duty in Afghanistan a few weeks short, returning home to Britain Mar. 1 after a 10 week military deployment, after the media leaked details of his deployment.
Prince Harry, 23 years old, and third in line for the British throne, is an officer in the British Army and a second-lieutenant in the Blues and Royals, according to www.princeofwales.gov.uk.
Also according to news.yahoo.com, Prince Harry left the southern province of Helmand in Afghanistan after facts about his military tour appeared on the American Web site for The Drudge Report.
This uncovered news that was “previously kept secret under a pool agreement between the Ministry of Defense and all major news organizations operating in Britain, including The Associated Press.”
After the news was disclosed that the Prince was fighting on the front-line against the Taliban, many Islamist Web sites posted messages alerting their “brethren” in Afghanistan to be on the lookout for the royal soldier, according to CNN.com.
Military officers thought it was too unsafe for the prince to be there because he could become a target, and he was immediately sent back to Britain.
The Defense Ministry said in a statement about Prince Harry’s return home that, “This decision has been taken primarily on the basis that the worldwide media coverage of Prince Harry in Afghanistan could impact on the security of those who are deployed there, as well as the risks to him as an individual soldier.”
Nicholas Trujillo, a freshman management major thinks that the Prince was courageous for going to Afghanistan, but that it is a good thing he was sent home because it would be a huge loss for Britain if anything had happened to him.
“It was brave of him to feel it was his duty to serve his country,” Trujillo said. “I think it was smart of them to pull him out because he’s such an important symbol to Britain and the morale would be been lost. And he’s a prince,” Trujillo said.
In exchange for not reporting the prince’s deployment, some media organizations were granted access to the prince in Afghanistan for interviews and filming, according to the BBC Web site.
The prince spoke to the media when he arrived in Britain, saying he was happy that the British media kept quiet, but disappointed in the foreign media breaking the news of his deployment.
Prince Harry said he was “surprised by the way the British media kept to their side of the bargain and … I am very grateful to that.”
He also said, “At the same time it doesn’t surprise me that once again it came down to media, foreign media, that’s once again spilled the beans.”
According to BBC.com, in an interview while in Afghanistan, Harry spoke about his times as a soldier on the front line.
“It’s very nice to be sort of a normal person for once, I think it’s about as normal as I’m going to get,” Prince Harry said.
Lane Farrar, a senior sociology major said that he thinks the prince was heavily protected in Afghanistan and that the whole trip was just for publicity.
“I don’t understand why they would put a high profile person in a secretive mission- he probably knew he was going to be protected- I think it’s a publicity stunt,” Farrar said.
According to CNN.com, the prince’s role in Afghanistan was as a tactical air controller – calling up allied air cover in support of ground forces. He also went out on foot patrols.
One CU student thinks that the prince had good intentions for wanting to help his country. However, she thinks that in today’s society it is frowned upon for royalty to participate in battle.
“I think Harry is just a boy who wants to help out his country but his title is something that could lead to his downfall more than any other soldier,” said Amie Osberg, senior philosophy major.
“It’s not like we haven’t had Princes or Kings fighting before, but today’s society looks down on it as something that could do more harm than good,” Osberg said.
The prince told media about his disappointment from being withdrawn from Afghanistan early.
“I didn’t see it coming; obviously it’s a shame,” said the Prince. “I am so disappointed, I thought I could see it through to the end and come back with our guys and the colonel himself.”
Contact Campus Press staff writer Melanie Cohn at Melanie.Cohn@colorado.edu
