The Taliban Says Prince Harry Is a Crazy 'Coward'

Reuters
Alexander Abad-Santos 1,403 Views Jan 22, 2013

Prince Harry may have humble-bragged his way home from Afghanistan, all full of war stories and gunned-down insurgents, but the Taliban isn't having any of it. "Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesman, said Prince Harry was a 'coward' for speaking only after he was out of harm's way," report The Telegraph's Rob Crilly and Zubair Babakarkhail.

On Monday, in interviews coordinated with the announcement that he had returned from a five-month tour of duty, Harry described, well, taking out the Taliban: 

If there's people trying to do bad stuff to our guys, then we'll take them out of the game, I suppose ... Take a life to save a life … the squadron's been out here. Everyone's fired a certain amount.

But the insurgents were particularly incensed with this quote in particular:

It’s a joy for me because I’m one of those people who loves playing PlayStation and Xbox, so with my thumbs I like to think I’m probably quite useful

Comparing killing to video games really rubbed the Taliban the wrong way and prompted them to play psychologist. Harry "has probably developed a mental problem," the Taliban spokesman is quoted as telling the AFP. He added:

This statement is not even worth condemning. It is worse than that ... To describe the war in Afghanistan as a game demeans anyone – especially a prince, who is supposed to be made of better things.

Those are fighting words, and just to be clear, the insurgents represented by the spokesman — the ones calling the prince "demeaning" — fall under the same umbrella organization as the insurgents who saw fit to promise to kill 14-year-old Malala Yousafzai for attending school and who aren't strangers to bragging about killing people. "It shows the lack of understanding, of knowledge," the Taliban said spokesman said. Hmm.

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at aabadsantos at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.

Related Articles   More by Alexander Abad-Santos

The Taliban Say They're Gunning for Prince Harry

What We Know About the Taliban-Held French Journalists' Release

With Kabul Under Attack, What Weakening Insurgency?

 

Why Is Twitter Letting Jose Canseco Set Another Example of Rape Victim Shame?

Yes, Oklahoma Truthers Think Obama Used His Anti-Scandal Weather Magic

Elsewhere on the Web

User Comments

Please type your comment and click Post. If you’re not already logged in you will be prompted to log in or register

  • The Atlantic Wire on Twitter
  • The Atlantic Wire RSS Feed
  • The Atlantic Wire iPhone App