Harry is ordered to the front line

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Prince Harry was "over the moon" last night after being told he will be going to Iraq within weeks.

The 22-year-old Army officer will command an armoured patrol on a six-month tour of duty after winning his battle to serve alongside his fellow soldiers.

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Harry, who had threatened to quit if he was not allowed to join his men on the front line, will become the first member of the Royal Family to serve in a war zone since Prince Andrew in the Falklands war 25 years ago.

The final decision to put the third in line to the throne in harm's way came after months of agonised debate between the Ministry of Defence and the royal household. Palace sources said the Queen had given her "whole-hearted support" to her grandson's deployment.

But while Harry's courage was lauded yesterday, there were concerns that insurgents will flock to southern Iraq in the hope of capturing him as a "trophy".

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Harry, pictured here in 1993, has always wanted to serve in the British Army

Islamic extremists warned his presence could provoke a backlash from British Muslims against the Royal Family.

Ralph Wykes-Sneyd, Prince Andrew's commanding officer in the Falklands War, said the Argentine military junta had plotted to capture Andrew "and parade him through the streets of Buenos Aires" in 1982.

He feared Harry would be in even greater danger. "He is a man of some celebrity. You offer up some trophy factor," he said.

Referring to Prince Andrew's service as a Navy helicopter pilot, he added: "There is a difference between sea operations and land operations. At sea you fight a war at much more distance from the enemy. You're much less likely to end up in the enemy's hands. That is not the case on land."

The Ministry of Defence also had to take into account the possibility that Harry's presence in Iraq would increase the risk to his fellow soldiers, who have wryly nicknamed him "bullet magnet".

Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Richard Dannatt, gave the final go-ahead to send Harry into action after consultations with the royal household and senior Government ministers.

The MoD confirmed that Harry's unit, "A" Squadron of the Blues and Royals, is among those going to Iraq from April, and that he will carry out a "normal troop commander's role".

In a statement jointly issued with Clarence House, the MoD said the decision to send Harry had been "a military one".

Senior royal sources told the Mail that while the Queen was concerned for his safety, her belief in the importance of duty meant that "if the Army say they want him there, Harry has her wholehearted support".

Asked what he thought about Prince Harry going to Iraq, Tony Blair told the BBC: "I think it is very typical of him. He is a very brave young man who wants to be part of his regiment and part of the Army. It shows a very special character on his part."

Cornet Wales, as he is known in the Army, will lead a troop of 12 men from the Blues and Royals in four Scimitar light tanks, carrying out long-range desert patrols.

Primarily responsible for surveillance and intelligence-gathering, the Prince's men are likely to operate well away from towns, using their mobility to keep watch on enemy movements across wide swathes of southern Iraq's remote deserts.

The nature of his work in Iraq will minimise the danger of him being identified by insurgents.

The MoD and Clarence house issued an unprecedented appeal for a news blackout once Harry arrives in Iraq - and for an end to any discussions about his unit's likely location.

His tour of duty is expected to test the strength of his relationship with girlfriend Chelsy Davy.

However the couple are likely to be reunited when Harry returns to Britain on leave in July. He will also be back in August for the pop concert and memorial service to mark the 10th anniversary of his mother's death.

It will also mean an abrupt end to the hectic socialising for which he has been criticised in recent months.

Major Charles Heyman, editor of the British Army Guide, said: "Young soldiers think it's brilliant that a member of the Royal Family will share their hardships and dangers. It has a really good knock-on effect on morale right across the armed forces.

"This is a young prince - a man in a privileged position - saying "I'm going to do my duty, the same as ordinary soldiers do".

"It shows the Royal Family has a real stake in the armed forces, not just ceremonial roles."

Harry had threatened to quit the Army if he was not allowed to serve in battle, saying last year: "There's no way I'm going to put myself through Sandhurst and then sit on my arse back home while my boys are out fighting for their country."

One friend said: "He is desperate to be treated as one of the lads. He would have felt totally humiliated if he had not been sent with the rest of his men."

Another source within his regiment said: "I would say Harry is over the moon. He joined the regiment to do what the regiment does."

But while the news was well received among his fellow soldiers, there were warnings of wider implications for the Royal Family.

Omar Bakri Mohammed, the former British-based firebrand Islamic preacher living in exile in Beirut, said radical Muslims in Britain would regard Harry's deployment as "a provocation".

"I don't know why Prince Harry isn't sensitive enough to realise that this will hurt the feelings of a lot of Muslims in Iraq and Great Britain," he said.

"In Britain it will be seen as provocation because he represents the Queen, the monarchy and the Church of England and that link could provoke Muslim youths."

Bakri's British representative Anjem Choudary warned that the announcement "did not bode well" for the Royal Family, although he stopped short of predicting terrorist plots against them.

"The Queen talks about shared values between all religions, but her grandson is going to be occupying a Muslim country. It doesn't bode well for the Royal Family," he said.

The extremist website Ahl us-Sunnah wal- Jamaa'ah Muntadaa yesterday carried a report on Harry's deployment headlined: "Prince Harry will be sent to Iraq to kill Muslims."

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