In a book full of startling revelations, Prince Harry’s assertion that he killed 25 people in Afghanistan is one of the most striking — and has drawn criticism from both enemies and allies.
In his memoir, Spare, Harry said he killed more than two dozen Taliban militants while serving as an Apache helicopter copilot gunner in Afghanistan in 2012 and 2013.
He wrote that he feels neither satisfaction nor shame about his actions, and in the heat of battle regarded enemy combatants as pieces being removed from a chessboard, “Baddies eliminated before they could kill Goodies.”
Photo: AP
Harry has talked before about his combat experience, saying near the end of his tour in 2013 that “if there’s people trying to do bad stuff to our guys, then we’ll take them out of the game.”
However, his decision to put a number on those he killed, and the comparison to chess pieces, drew outrage from the Taliban, and concern from British veterans.
“Mr. Harry! The ones you killed were not chess pieces, they were humans; they had families who were waiting for their return,” prominent Taliban member Anas Haqqani wrote on Twitter on Friday.
The Taliban, who adhere to a strict interpretation of Islam, returned to power when Western troops withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021.
Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affais spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi said that Harry’s comments “are a microcosm of the trauma experienced by Afghans at the hands of occupation forces who murdered innocents without any accountability.”
In the UK, some veterans and military leaders said publishing a head count contravened an unspoken military code.
Colonel Tim Collins, who led a British battalion during the Iraq war, told Forces News that the statement was “not how you behave in the Army; it’s not how we think.”
Retired Royal Navy officer rear admiral Chris Parry called the claim “distasteful.”
Some asked whether Harry could be sure of the toll, but Harry said he reviewed video footage of his missions, and “in the era of Apaches and laptops,” technology let him know exactly how many enemy combatants he had killed.
Others said Harry’s words could increase the security risk for him and for British forces around the world.
“I don’t think it is wise that he said that out loud,” Royal Marines veteran Ben McBean, who knows Harry from their military days, told Sky News. “He’s already got a target on his back, more so than anyone else.”
Retired army colonel Richard Kemp told the BBC the claim was “an error of judgement” that would be “potentially valuable to those people who wish the British forces and British government harm.”
Harry lost his publicly funded British police protection when he and his wife, Meghan, quit royal duties in 2020. Harry is suing the British government over its refusal to let him pay personally for police security when he comes to Britain.
Harry’s memoir is due to be published around the world on Tuesday.
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