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Prince Harry is under no illusions of his value as a scalp for Iraqi insurgents. Even so, senior military officers could never have predicted the sheer scale and nature of the threats lying in wait.
Iraqi militias have already hatched detailed plans to seize him as a hostage when he arrives in Iraq next month. Some of the most notorious paramilitary factions in southern Iraq claim that informants placed inside British military barracks in Iraq will "track" the movements of the third in line to the throne.
The claims question the Ministry of Defence's decision to allow Harry, who says he does not want to "sit on my arse back home while my boys are out fighting for their country", to serve in Iraq.
Yesterday a ministry spokesman said: "We have not concealed the fact that he is going out there and the bad guys know that he's coming and we expect that they will consider him a high-profile scalp."
Despite the threats, officials ruled out the possibility of the Prince not being sent to Maysan, the most volatile province in southern Iraq, where attacks against British forces are mounting. He will serve with his regiment, the Blues and Royals, for a six-month tour of duty.
He is trained as a troop leader to take command of four Scimitar armoured reconnaissance vehicles and will be deployed in Iraq alongside 11 men who will serve under him.
Last week two soldiers died after their Scimitar light tank was struck by a roadside bomb in Maysan. Ten British soldiers, including two women, have died in Iraq this month, making it the worst month since the invasion. The total number of British dead is now 144.
One senior Army officer who has completed three tours of duty in Basra said Harry's imminent arrival in Iraq was causing "disquiet at senior levels" within the military.
He warned that those around him, particularly those under Harry's direct command, could be at an increased risk. "Wherever they place him in theatre, the concern is it will attract fire towards everyone on the ground."
He described Harry as "the mother of all targets".
Militia leaders claim photos of Harry have already been circulated among the main insurgent groups in the area where the Prince will be deployed. They say snipers belonging to Shiite militia groups have been ordered to target the 22-year-old, and Sunni insurgents say they plan to hold the Prince hostage to demand the release of prisoners and immediate withdrawal of British troops.
Even if some of the testimony is bluster, it suggests Shiite and Sunni militias have united to capture Harry.
Abu Zaid, commander of the Malik Ibn Al Ashtar Brigade of the Mehdi army militia, said: "We are awaiting the arrival of the young, handsome, spoiled Prince with bated breath and we confidently expect he will come out into the open on the battlefield.
"We will be generous with him. For we will return him to his grandmother but without ears.
"We have printed out many photographs of him from the internet and given them to all other groups. They know the Prince is their main objective and I have every confidence he will be targeted and attacked."
Abu Samir, a leader of the Sunni group Thar-allah ("God's Revenge") added: "His face is now very familiar to a lot of people - more so even than [footballers] Zidane and Ronaldinho".
The Sunni insurgent commander and former major in the Iraqi Army said they had insiders supplying a "constant" flow of information from within the military barracks.
"They have new orders to track Prince Harry's movements. Wherever the British Army decides to keep the Prince we will find him."
Another senior Sunni militia source said: "Plans [to abduct] are already in place. As soon as the Prince arrives, the race will be on to seize him as a trophy and then to decide his fate."
Abu Ahmed, another commander within the Mehdi army, said: "He should follow his mother, Diana, and rebel against the imperialistic family and not come here as a crusader, or his blood will flow into our desert."
Zaid said that if plans to abduct Harry failed, militias would try to assassinate him. "Our sniper teams have also been issued with pictures so they will know his face long before he arrives in our land."
Any hopes that Harry would blend in among the 7100 British stationed in Iraq already appear misplaced and he will not receive extra security in Iraq. "He's surrounded by a lot of heavily-armed men," a government source said yesterday.
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