By Alexei Summers (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: September 26, 2012
On September 14, 2012, insurgents wearing US Army uniforms stormed a joint US-British army compound in Afghanistan. According to CNN, two US servicemen died in the raid, as well as 14 of the 15 insurgents. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, declaring it the result of a controversial anti-Islam film that sparked rage with Muslims in the Islamic Middle East.
The camp, known as Camp Bastion, was the reported whereabouts of the United Kingdom’s Prince Harry, Grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, and third in line to the British throne. According to the Taliban’s statement, he was their real target in the raid.
Prince Harry, who was a mile-and-a-half away during the attack, was immediately put under lockdown during the raid, and was protected. According to NATO’s International Security Assistance’s spokesman, Major Martin Crighton, he was “in no way of danger.”
The prince had only been in Afghanistan since Friday, having just begun a tour as an Apache helicopter pilot after 18-months of training. The British forces have not lost any of their Apache helicopters in their time in Afghanistan, and the risk level for Harry has been commented on as being low.
Britain has plans to withdraw from Afghanistan by 2014. At the current time their objective is to train Afghan forces in defending their own country from terrorist forces.
While the prince being in the army may be seen as admirable, and positive for the morale of the troops, it can also be seen as irrevocably irresponsible. The fact that that the war in Afghanistan is largely a guerilla war, and a religious one at that, where combatants often appear as regular civilians, it is unlike wars of the past.
If compared to other wars, it can perhaps best be compared to the Vietnam War, where the Americans fought the Viet Cong in hopes of toppling communism in Asia. The American forces were constantly caught unaware, and were unsure who their enemy was, as they were often pitted against poor farmers with rifles hiding in the jungle.
Prince Harry’s presence in Afghanistan drew attention to this encampment, and though the raid’s initial goal was unsuccessful, two American soldiers are dead because inside information regarding the prince’s location on the evening of September 14 was given to the enemy. Further attacks like this could be prevented by removing Harry from the warzone.
My own concern lies not with the prince, but with those who are designated to protect, and babysit him. The prince’s presence in the war is largely a morale booster for troops, and although he does play an active role by piloting his helicopter, perhaps his role is hurting rather than helping, and perhaps his absence from the conflict could save lives.
