タリバン幹部、ヘンリー王子を非難 「チェスの駒」表現受け

【カブールＡＦＰ＝時事】アフガニスタンのイスラム主義組織タリバンの幹部は６日、英国のヘンリー王子（３８）がアフガン従軍時にタリバンの戦闘員２５人を殺害したと告白し、盤上から「チェスの駒」を取り除くようなものだったと表現していることを非難した。（写真は従軍時代のヘンリー王子）
　王子はこれまで、アフガンで何人を殺害したかを公表していなかった。だが、パイロットとして搭乗した攻撃ヘリコプター「アパッチ」の機首にはビデオカメラが取り付けられていたため、殺害した人数を明確に把握できていた。来週発売予定の自伝「スペア（原題）」では、「私の（殺した）数は２５人だ。満足できる数字でも、恥じる数字でもない」と記している。
　これに対してタリバン幹部のアナス・ハッカニ氏はツイッターで、「ミスター・ヘンリー！ あなたが殺したのはチェスの駒ではなく人間だ。帰りを待つ家族もいた」として、王子は「戦争犯罪」を行ったと非難した。
　さらに「あなたの言う通り、あなた方の兵士や軍、政治指導者にとって、罪のないわが国民はチェスの駒だったのだろう」「それでも、あなた方は『ゲーム』に負けたのだ」と続けた。
　タリバン政権のビラル・カリミ報道官も王子の発言を批判。
「このような犯罪を行ったのはヘンリー王子に限ったことではない。どの占領国もわが国で同じような犯罪を繰り返してきた」「アフガン人は占領国が犯した罪を決して忘れず、宗教と国家を守る精神を永久に持ち続けるだろう」とツイートした。
　王子がアフガン従軍をめぐって論争を巻き起こしたのは今回が初めてではない。２０１３年にも、戦闘員を撃つことをテレビゲームに例え、タリバンから精神状態を疑問視された。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/01/10-13:16）

A senior Taliban official on Friday slammed Prince Harry after the royal disclosed he killed 25 people on military duty in Afghanistan and wrote it was like removing chess pieces from a board.
In his memoir to be released next week, Harry reveals the exact number of people he killed during two tours of duty, British media has reported.
My number is 25. It's not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me, he wrote in the book Spare due out Tuesday.
Anas Haqqani, a senior Taliban leader, criticised the Duke of Sussex over the remarks, saying those Harry killed were Afghans who had families.
Mr Harry! The ones you killed were not chess pieces, they were humans, Haqqani tweeted, accusing the prince of committing war crimes.
The truth is what you've said; Our innocent people were chess pieces to your soldiers, military and political leaders.
Still, you were defeated in that 'game'.
Afghan government spokesman Bilal Karimi also criticised Harry for his remarks.
Such crimes are not limited to Harry, but every occupying country has a history of such crimes in our country, he tweeted.
Afghans will never forget the crimes of the occupiers and will always keep the spirit of protecting their religion and country alive.
Harry served 10 years in the British military, rising to the rank of captain.
He carried out two tours of duty against the Taliban, first as a forward air controller calling in air strikes in 2007 and 2008, and later flying an attack helicopter in 2012 and 2013.
- 'Flashman braggadocio' -
Cameras mounted on the nose of his Apache chopper enabled him to assess his missions and determine with certainty how many he had killed.
He justified his actions using the memory of the 9/11 attacks in the United States and after meeting families of the victims.
Those responsible and their sympathisers were enemies of humanity and fighting them was an act of vengeance for a crime against humanity, he wrote in the book.
But his comments have come in for severe criticism in Britain.
Ben McBean, a fellow veteran who lost an arm and leg with the Royal Marines in Afghanistan in 2008 and who was described by Harry as a real hero, slammed the prince for his remarks.
Love you #Prince Harry but you need to shut up! Makes you wonder the people he's hanging around with, he tweeted.
Colonel Tim Collins, who became famous for a rousing speech he gave to his troops ahead of the war in Iraq, said the book was a tragic money-making scam.
Harry has now turned against the other family, the military, that once embraced him, having trashed his birth family, the retired commander told the Forces news website.
On Harry's claim about killing 25, Collins said: That's not how you behave in the army; it's not how we think.
Referring to a fictional British soldier, journalist and royal author Tina Brown accused Harry of boasting with Flashman braggadocio about his exploits in Afghanistan.
That's very unattractive. I don't think anybody is going to admire him for that in places that it counts, she told BBC radio.
It is not the first time Harry has sparked controversy regarding his Afghan service.
In 2013, he likened shooting insurgents to playing video games, prompting the Taliban to query his mental health.