"Prince Harry isn't going to Iraq after all.

Gen. Richard Dannatt, the head of the British army, said Wednesday that Iraq duty would be too risky for the 22-year-old soldier prince, the younger son of Prince Charles and Princess Diana and third in line to the British throne. Dannatt said he reached his decision after a visit to Iraq last week and learning of specific threats being made by insurgents against Harry and the soldiers in his unit.

"These threats expose not only him but also those around him to a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable," said Dannatt, reversing his public declaration two weeks ago that Harry would be deployed as a troop commander with British forces in Basra in southern Iraq. "As a professional soldier, Prince Harry will be extremely disappointed."

The question of Harry's possible deployment to Iraq has divided Britons. Some said he should be allowed to fight in keeping with royal family tradition dating back centuries, as ' ie has repeatedly said he would like Lo do. Others said Harry would provide a tempting target for insurgents and his presence would pose an unnecessary risk to himself and his fellow soldiers. Some said that especially considering his mother's tragc death in 1997, the consequences of Harry's being killed or taken captive in Iraq would simply be too awful for Britain to bear.

Defense Secretary Des Browne initially announced in February that Harry would be sent to Iraq, and that decision was affirmed on April 30 by Dannatt, who said at the time the situation would be continually reviewed. "As with any military operation, circumstances do change, and therefore so should decisions, if necessary," Dannatt said Wednesday.

Some called the decision a victory for the Iraq insurgency.

"This has very unfortunate consequences in that he creates the impression of, one, a victory for the insurgents," Desmond Swayne, a Conservative Party member of Parliament, told the BBC. "Two, it's clearly got to be a blow to morale if a member of the royal family, a genuine' member of the armed forces, a serving officer, a real soldier, is treated as if he's too precious to be sacrificed or put in harm's way. That reinforces the impression that the insurgents may have a propaganda victory there. I don't think it's true, but it creates that impression."

Reg Keys, the father of a British soldier killed in Basra in 2003, said, "It would appear that Harry's life is more valuable than my son or the other nearly 150 service personnel who've given their lives."

William Shawcross, an author who has written about the royal family, said in an interview that he believed top army officials made their decision after carefully weighing the intelligence. "Of course, the ghastly terrorists are more powerful than we want them to be," he said.

Clarence House, Prince Charles's office, issued a statement saying that Harry was "very disappointed" at the decision.

"He fully understands and accepts General Dannatt's difficult decision and remains committed to his army career," the statement said.

Dannatt said he had instructed Harry's commanding officer to "continue to develop Prince Harry's professional career in the army," but he said he would not speculate on what he "might be doing over the next few weeks and months."

Maj. Charles Heyman, editor of Armed Forces of the UK, told reporters he believed Harry would resign rather than accept a noncombat desk job while so many other soldiers were fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said that unlike his uncle, Prince Andrew, whose stature was enhanced by seeing combat in the Falklands War, Harry could see his credibility among peers suffer if he were always seen as the prince who was not sent to Iraq because it was too dangerous.

"It would be a terrible label to pin on him," Heyman said.

Dannatt also said widespread media coverage of Harry's deployment was a factor in his decision. In recent weeks, media reports have debated endlessly on Harry's possible deployment, including speculation about when and where he might be posted. "It is a fact that this close scrutiny has exacerbated the situation and this is something that I wish to avoid in future," Dannatt said." (Kevin Sullivan, The Washington Post, May 17, 2007)