PRINCE Harry has hinted he has no regrets about revealing his Taliban kill count – despite being accused of putting British troops at risk of revenge attacks.
The Duke of Sussex said he spoke openly about killing 25 militants during his time in Afghanistan in his autobiography Spare to "heal" himself and help others.
He was heavily criticised for potentially betraying comrades he fought alongside, with retired military officers suggesting he had undermined their personal security as well as his own.
But the prince has since defended his words, insisting it's important for soldiers to discuss the "parts of service that haunt us".
Harry told PEOPLE: "I don't know that you ever fully reconcile the painful elements of being at war.
"This is something each soldier has to confront, and in the nearly two decades of working alongside service personnel and veterans, I've listened to their stories and have shared mine.
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"In these conversations, we often talk about the parts of our service that haunt us — the lives lost, the lives taken.
"But also the parts of our service that heal us and the lives we've saved."
The 38-year-old went on to say that being open about his combat tours was good for his "healing journey", and that "silence is the least effective remedy".
"It's a duty, a job, and a service to our country — and having done two tours of duty in Afghanistan for my country, I've done all I could to be the best soldier I was trained to be," he added.
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"There's truly no right or wrong way to try and navigate these feelings, but I know from my own healing journey that silence has been the least effective remedy.
"Expressing and detailing my experience is how I chose to deal with it, in the hopes it would help others."
Harry's military career lasted 10 years and included two deployments to Afghanistan – in 2007 and 2008, and again in 2012 to 2013.
While working as an Apache helicopter pilot during the second, he flew on six missions that resulted in Taliban deaths.
The prince says that he did not think of the 25 as "people" but rather "chess pieces" that had to be taken off the board.
He also saw the insurgents he killed as "baddies eliminated before they could kill goodies", he writes.
Soldiers do not usually know how many enemies they have wiped out, but Harry alleges he watched nose-cam footage of each of his kills when he got back to base.
"My number is 25. It's not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me," he says.
'REKINDLE JIHADIST ANIMOSITY'
Harry was deployed as a forward air controller in the Helmand province during his tour in 2007.
He was "very proud" to serve there for more than two months before his location was leaked.
He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant with the Household Cavalry on in April 2008 then retrained as a helicopter pilot in the Army Air Corps.
Harry returned to Afghanistan in 2012 as a co-pilot and gunner at Camp Bastion for 20 weeks before leaving the military in March 2015.
He said at the time that killing insurgents was part of his job, and that "we take a life to save a life".
Security experts said the duke's service already makes him a top target for kidnapping, terrorism and a range of other threats.
But his latest comments increase risks to the safety of Harry and the Armed Forces, it is alleged.
Colonel Richard Kemp said it would "rekindle jihadist animosity against him and incite some who want to take revenge".
He added: "This will incite some people to attempt an attack on British soldiers anywhere in the world.
"The impact on his own personal security is even greater."
Colonel Tim Collins, known for a pre-battle speech he made in Iraq, agreed that Harry's conduct is "not how we behave in the Army".
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He told Forces News: "Harry has now turned against the other family, the military, that once embraced him, having trashed his birth family.
"He has badly let the side down. We don't do notches on the rifle butt. We never did."
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