The head of the British army says he has personally decided that Prince Harry will go to Iraq, amidst reports Shiite insurgents may form a special unit to target him.
Gen. Sir Richard Dannatt said the decision will be kept under review, but says he hopes his statement will end media speculation on Harry's deployment.
"The decision has been taken by myself that he will deploy in due course," Dannatt said.
"I would urge that the somewhat frenzied media activity surrounding this particular story should cease in the interests of the overall security of all our people deployed in Iraq."
Dannatt spoke after newspapers reported unidentified senior military officials as saying Harry, third in line to the throne, could be banned from the battlefield after an army review. But he could still work a desk job.
"This whole matter arose earlier this month due to the fact that casualty rates for the British army have been dramatically high, and the issue therefore became very political as people realized that Prince Harry could be a major target," Rafal Heydel-Mankoo, editor of Burke's Peerage and Gentry, told CTV Newsnet.
"However, we have a moral issue. Many families whose children fought in the war though, if their children should sacrifice their lives, why on Earth couldn't Prince Harry?"
The Guardian newspaper is reporting that Shiite militants have set up a special squad targeting Harry should he be posted to Iraq.
The British newspaper quoted a commander in the Mahdi Army -- the militia loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr -- as saying the group had informants inside British army bases who would tip them off about Harry's presence.
"One of our aims is to capture Harry, we have people inside the British bases to inform us on when he will arrive," commander Abu Mujtaba is quoted as saying.
The Guardian said it couldn't substantiate Abu Mujtaba's claims and the British military dismissed them as propaganda.
The 22-year-old Prince's regiment, the Blues and Royals, is due to begin a six-month tour of duty in Iraq within weeks. British commanders had reportedly been reconsidering their decision to allow the prince to fight in Iraq.
A British newspaper reported this weekend that Prince Harry told a group of 20 close friends that he's a "nervous wreck" ahead of his much publicized deployment to Iraq as a royal army officer.
Reporting on contents of an alleged farewell speech Harry gave Friday, the British tabloid News of the World also quoted Harry as saying: "I've waited a long time, and just want to get out there and serve my country.''
Nevertheless, he said "It's a great, great feeling to go to Iraq ... I don't know what to expect. I'm nervous, excited and apprehensive ... and I'm really looking forward to it. I just want to get out there and do it."
The third in line to the throne added he's honoured to serve his country and is prepared to "do anything they throw at me."
Observers seem split on whether Harry should be deployed. While some believe Harry would endanger his comrades, others say not sending him could be embarrassing for the royal family and for the British government.
"It's cost the taxpayer tens of thousands of pounds to train him to be a soldier, to train him to go out and do the job he wants to do," Dickie Arbiter, a former royal spokesperson, told ABC News in London. "If they didn't want him to do it, why did they let him in the army in the first place?"
Harry, a second lieutenant, is a tank commander trained to lead a 12-man team in four armoured reconnaissance vehicles.
Harry will become the first royal to serve in a war zone since his uncle, Prince Andrew, flew as a helicopter pilot in the Falklands war in 1982.
"At the time, there were concerns that he would become a target for the Argentine forces," said Heydel-Mankoo. "And indeed, the Argentine air force did try to find out which helicopters he was flying."
With files from The Associated Press
