BUDGIE, Ginge, Cornet Wales, Widow Six Seven – whatever you like to call
Prince Harry, in less than 48 hours he rocked our world. From the exposure
of his presence in Helmand province on Thursday evening to his return to RAF
Brize Norton yesterday, he transformed the public image of himself, the
army, the royals and the war against the enemy he called “Terry Taliban”.
To describe this as a sensational public-relations coup is not to diminish the
prince’s determination. He wanted to go and, with General Sir Richard
Dannatt, chief of the general staff, he made it happen. In doing so, he left
the sneerers struggling to find a downside.
Most spectacularly, Jon Snow on Channel 4 News dug a hole for himself on
Thursday by questioning the ethics of a press blackout to which his own
company had agreed. Viewers e-mailed to accuse him of treason or worse. On
Friday, undeterred, Channel 4 News kept on digging by trying to whip up
antiHarry feeling among British Muslims. Spotting the racist implication
that they were being lumped in with the Taliban, almost all the Muslims
backed Harry.
Even the Arab media were impressed by the behaviour of the soldier prince.
“It’s an extremely important story for us,” said Abdel Bari Atwan,
editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab paper Al-Quds al-Arabi. “He’s the grandson
of the Queen on the front line . . . He’s endangering his life and he’s not
scared to fight for his country.”
Atwan said his newspaper had contrasted “the brother of the future British
king fighting discreetly and without publicity” with “Arab royal families
who prefer to stay in their palaces and enjoy the oil wealth of their
countries”.
Only the most rabid extremists remained to provide backing for the sneerers.
“I think Prince Harry has been involved in an act of war with Muslims,” said
Omar Bakri Mohammed from Leba-non. He is banned from Britain.
The Prince flew to the main base at Kandahar in the week before Christmas. So
far so normal. His special status was acknowledged when he was taken over by
the Special Boat Service – the marine equivalent of the SAS. They took him
by helicopter to Helmand, avoiding the Camp Bastion base filled with
thousands of allied troops. Then he had special Gurkha protection. But
otherwise he shared the life of his men. This was what he wanted, but it
also avoided any suggestion that his deployment was purely cosmetic.
Yesterday the full extent of his involvement with the fighting emerged. When
the news broke on Thursday, Harry, call sign Widow Six Seven, was acting as
mobile forward air controller for a USled advance. He was directing French
aircraft in an attack on Taliban fighters flushed out by US and Afghan
troops.
Harry, known to his mates as Ginge, for obvious reasons, or Budgie, because he
was seen by colleagues “flapping like a budgie” on his first day, was also
involved in questioning civilians. “The great question is ‘Where’s the
Taliban?’ ” he said. “I have asked, ‘Where’s Bin Laden?’ in the past. They
just laugh. One guy said, ‘You’re too late.’ ” What has Harry achieved by
putting himself so thoroughly in harm’s way?
First, he rescued the defence secretary, Des Browne, and his ministry. Early
last year, the image of the British armed forces was at a new low after the
Iranian capture of 15 British sailors. The Iranians exploited the incident
by first humiliating then handing back the sailors.
Browne made matters worse by allowing, then disallowing the sailors to sell
their stories.
Browne also botched the deployment of Harry to Iraq. In February 2007 he
announced – to the world and Al-Qaeda – that the prince was going.
Inevitably, because of the security risk Browne created, the MoD had to back
down and Harry’s deployment was cancelled.
Dannatt and Harry were both furious. From their anger sprang the deal that
produced a media blackout for 10 weeks while Harry was in theatre. For the
army, in need of new recruits, the exploits of Harry were pure publicity
gold.
Yesterday, Dannatt spoke of the impact of Harry on the front line. “I think
that’s good for him, I think that’s good for the royal family, certainly
good for the army. I think that’s good for the nation . . .” Dannatt also
spoke of signs that opposition to the Iraq war is giving way to respect for
the army’s achievements. “You only have to reflect on the large number of
homecoming parades and enthusiasm . . . I was just delighted to see the way
that many towns and cities and communities welcomed regiments back . . .
there is a great degree of appreciation of what our soldiers and servicemen
are doing both in Iraq and in Afghanistan.”
Harry is the jewel in the crown of Dannatt’s campaign to save the army from
apathy, public distaste for operations in Iraq and political
cack-handedness.
Harry also saved himself. The staged photographs, videos and interviews
covering his time in Helmand contrast starkly with the shots of him lurching
drunkenly out of London nightclubs. Plainly, for him, the army had worked as
it should – giving purpose to a drifting existence. Hopeless Harry had
become Hero Harry.
A hero is also what the royals needed. The Diana inquest may be making a fool
of Mohamed Al Fayed, but it’s doing the royals no favours by raking over one
of the most terrible episodes in the Queen’s reign. Hero Harry is a welcome
distraction.
But yesterday Harry seemed to read from the wrong script. “I don’t want to sit
around in Windsor,” he said. “I generally don’t like England that much and
it’s nice to be away from all the press and the papers and all the general
shite that they write.”
The media – and especially the international paparazzi – won’t take this well.
They had agreed to the blackout and had taken some flattering pictures in
theatre and conducted some equally flattering interviews. Harry’s demeanour
on leaving his plane at Brize Norton – no smile, no wave, nothing for the
cameras – seemed to suggest something more than the feelings of a soldier
snatched from his posting. It suggested real disappointment at being back in
the royal goldfish bowl. He may have thought it was bad before he left; now
it’s going to be worse.
Then there’s the terrorist threat. As the hate internet sites make clear, he
is now the highest-value Al-Qaeda target in Britain and one of the highest
in the world.
“The rest will be the business of the lions of Al-Qaeda and the eagles of the
Taliban,” one site said before Harry was extracted.
His security is now certain to be beefed up to the point where it is likely
his clubbing days are over. Officers from Scotland Yard have met to discuss
strategy. A senior Whitehall official said yesterday that MI5 would be
monitoring radical Islamic websites to see what further threats were being
made against the prince.
A skiing trip to Klosters rumoured to be planned in a month’s time will be the
first big test of these raised levels of protection. This will be a new
experience for Harry, who has been used to living the London high life. Did
he, when he fought to be allowed to face the enemy, imagine the price of
victory?
The exploits of Hero Harry have been a triumph for Dan-natt, the army, the
prince and the royals. But now the hard work really begins – of keeping
Harry focused on the reality of the new role he has made for himself, of
providing him with higher levels of security and of preventing his new
celebrity from, once again, destabilising the royals, that most unstable of
families. Terry Taliban provides one challenge, but avoiding the fate of his
mother – a woman destroyed by fame – may turn out to be the real test.
The Prince’s combat gear
FRONT
Pistol Browning 9mm automatic, magazine holds 13 rounds
Notebook Sandproof and waterproof. For taking down grid references and
notes from briefings
Torch Lightweight. For reading maps and battle orders by night
BACK
Body armour Osprey vest protects from bullets and shrapnel
Badge Eagle crest presented to Harry by Estonian troops
Kukri knife Parting gift from Gurkhas when he left a forward operation
base
Boost for army
Prince Harry’s deployment on the front line has helped change the public
perception of the war in Afghanistan, the head of the army said in an
interview this weekend.
General Sir Richard Dannatt claimed Harry’s role would “raise the profile” of
the efforts of British troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He said it was “in tune” with the country’s greater appreciation of the work
of the army and might also help boost recruitment into the forces as a
whole.
“I think the exposure of this episode with Prince Harry and the way it has
been shown serves to better inform the public of what’s going on,” he said.
Dannatt was delighted at the prince’s tour of duty but argued it did not set
any precedent for future royal deployments.
“It has been a significant contribution to the operation, and well done him,”
he said.
“I would presume as a red-blooded young man that he will be disappointed not
to complete the tour.
“But I also believe that he will be understanding of the situation. All the
way through he has not wanted his presence to expose other soldiers to extra
danger.”
Dannatt said any future deployments involving Prince William or Prince Harry
would be taken on a “case by case” basis.
But he pointed out that it was “hypothetical” to consider a deployment for
Harry over the next 12 to 18 months because the prince had regimental duties
and training responsibilities.
