Army mulls Prince Harry's role

London: Army chiefs still want to find a way of letting Prince Harry fulfil his dream of seeing frontline action.

Desperate to repair the public relations disaster caused by the decision not to send him to Iraq, they are trying to find him a secret war role by switching him to another unit.

There are two options: he could be deployed to a United Nations force, which would enable him to serve in trouble spots in Africa or Bosnia, where there is a smaller risk of being directly targeted by insurgents. The other would be to switch him to another regiment so that he could see action in Afghanistan.

Military sources said they would find a way for him to enter and leave the conflict area without the public finding out until he was safely home.

Until then Harry, 22, may have to spend time with colleagues injured and at the end of their careers as Army chiefs wrestle with what to do with him.

He will now join his brother William in D Squadron of the Blues and Royals, a holding unit destined never to go to war. The squadron, which has far fewer men than his original A squadron, is made up of injured soldiers unfit to serve or those preparing to leave the regiment.

The Army's U-turn on sending him to Iraq came after a detailed report by British commanders on the ground suggesting he would be deliberately targeted by splinter groups directly paid and supplied by Iran.

If Harry is transferred to the UN, that would allow him to serve in a trouble spot such as Darfur.

Until a decision is made about his future, Harry is expected to keep a low profile. His girlfriend Chelsy Davy is understood to be in London, but Harry is under strict orders to avoid adverse publicity by being seen out at nightclubs. The Army's volte-face has left the soldiers who were under Harry's command - and who had to wait in the UK while their colleagues went to Iraq ahead of them - feeling disgruntled, according to a source.

He said: "Some of Harry's troop are a bit p***** off by this. Harry told the guys he was definitely going. They have had to hang around.

"Now they've got to get used to a new troop commander once one is found. It is a bit of shambles."

The final decision not to send Harry came after the assessment of the commanders on the ground was endorsed by Lt General Nick Houghton, the Joint Operations Commander in the UK.

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Career in jeopardy after 'devastating' decision

Despite assurances by Clarence House that Harry will not quit the Army as a result of the decision, it has left him "devastated" and reconsidering his long-term military career, according to senior sources. The dilemma for the Army is how to ensure that the prince has a fulfilling career without leaving him open to the sort of danger he would have faced in Iraq.

If he stays with the Blues and Royals, the only other immediate possibility of performing an operational tour of duty would be in Afghanistan - which would have exposed him as a target to insurgents in exactly the same way as Iraq.

The difficulty has been compounded by the fact that the A and B squadrons of his regiment have already been sent to Iraq, while the other active unit, C Squadron, is to be sent to Afghanistan "imminently".

One source close to Harry said: "It is going to play on his mind - why am I doing all this training if I am not going to use it? And it is a valid question.

"Harry wants to be taken seriously as a professional soldier - this decision makes that almost impossible."

William is to leave the Blues and Royals in a few months to join the RAF and the Royal Navy for short periods as part of the preparation for his future role as head of the Armed Forces. Royal sources have suggested this as a possible option for Harry as well.