Having “trashed his biological family,” a retired commanding officer claims that Prince Harry has “turned against” his military family.
The Duke of Sussex likens the deaths of twenty-five Taliban fighters in Afghanistan to “chess pieces plucked off the board” in his autobiography.
That’s “not how you behave in the army,” as former colonel Tim Collins put it.
In his autobiography, “Spare,” Prince Harry describes his service as a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan.
After its early release in Spain, BBC News was able to get its hands on a copy of the book.
After two tours in the Helmand province of Afghanistanit is entirely likely that Prince Harry has claimed in this book that he had personally killed 25 enemy combatants.
While the number didn’t make him feel “proud” or “ashamed,” he says it didn’t do anything to his self-esteem either.
“When I was in the thick of the fight, I didn’t count those 25 people as a separate entity. If you treat others as human, you won’t be able to kill them.
“When you treat others as human, you can’t help but treat them with respect and kindness. They were pawns removed from a chessboard, villains put to rest before they could slaughter heroes.
They taught me to look at them as the “other,” and they did a good job of it.
Anas Haqqani, a key member of the Taliban leadership, tweeted in response to the prince’s remarks: “Mr. Harry! The people you slaughtered were not pawns; they were people with lives and families.
As the saying goes, “they are deaf and blind for you. So I don’t think the ICC will summon you or human rights advocates would criticize you.
Retired commanding officer Colonel Collins slammed the book as a “tragic money-making fraud” in an interview with Forces News.
Col. Collins, said: “Not how we do things in the Army; not how we think.
“He’s done the team a huge disservice. Riflebutt notches are not done here. Not once did we.”
The former colonel, who became famous throughout the world for his speech to troops in Iraq on the brink of war. Said: “After trashing his biological family, Harry has turned his back on the military family that once accepted him.
He said Harry was following a “foreign path” and “pursuing riches he does not need.”
Ultimately, I see nothing but disappointment and sorrow in his chase of wealth he does not require. And his rejection of the familial and comradely affection he so desperately needs.
Col. Richard Kemp, a former army officer who was transferred to Kabul in 2003 to assume command of forces in Afghanistan. Told the BBC that he did not mind that Prince Harry had revealed his kill number, despite the fact that it was rare.
He said that soldiers often discuss casualties among themselves as a “method of virtually decompressing” after a period of fighting.
Col. Kemp warned against the “propaganda to the adversary” that could result from comparing dead Taliban terrorists to chess pieces.
He noted the remarks may have weakened Prince Harry’s security and potentially incite others to take retribution.
We’ve seen how the Taliban has taken advantage of this in the past. So they’re always attempting to radicalize and recruit people, he said.
During his second, far lengthier tour of duty, Prince Harry flew Apache helicopters after briefly serving as a forward air controller on the ground, calling in strikes.
Osama bin Laden and other 9/11-linked al-Qaeda members were allegedly being protected by the Taliban. So the United States and its NATO allies invaded in October 2001 to remove them.
After meeting multiple times, Ben McBean, who lost an arm and a leg while serving with the Royal Marines in Afghanistan, told Prince Harry to “stop talking” about his heroic service.
Twitter posts he made included: “Please, #PrinceHarry, keep your mouth quiet. One has to wonder who he is associating with.
Someone would have warned him to stop by now if it was nice people.
A second active-duty service member told the BBC that Harry’s remarks were “extremely unsoldier-like.”
He also said he didn’t care about keeping tally, echoing the sentiments of many service members. Those who put pen to paper tend to be more concerned about their body count.
As a helicopter pilot, Harry saw individuals employing electrical devices and sensors.
As an added bonus, he could study footage from the cockpit, including the effects of his cannon and hellfire missiles (albeit the dust would quickly cloud the image). However, there are times when it is impossible to tell the difference between the injured and the dead from the bodies on the ground.
However, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak did said he was “enormously grateful to our armed services” and declined to comment on whether or not the prince’s claim of 25 kills was appropriate.
When queried about the prince’s kill count, a Ministry of Defense spokesman stated, “We do not comment on operational details for security reasons.”