London, Feb. 19 : With British Royal Prince Harry getting ready to serve in Iraq, the army commanders are grappling for his security in the country.

Harry, the third in line to the throne, is getting set to join his men on operations in a war zone. His unit will begin a six-month tour of duty in southern Iraq in April.

The decision on his deployment in Iraq was taken after months of deliberations during which Harry had threatened to quit if he were left behind for his own safety.

However, this decision has raised concerns about over the Prince's security amongst officials, and they are discussing whether the Metropolitan Police personal protection officers who guard Harry around the clock in the UK should continue doing so in Iraq.

Before Harry, the last member of the Royal Family to serve on military operations was Prince Andrew who flew helicopters in the Falklands War 25 years ago.

Senior officers may decide to keep Harry out of danger with a relatively safe job inside a headquarters.

They may also allow him to lead a 12-strong armoured reconnaissance patrol for which he has spent months training, while being restricted to remote desert areas where he would be difficult to track down.

"Harry's always wanted to be treated as an ordinary soldier and I think people respect him for that. He's not an ordinary soldier, of course, but it looks like he's got his way over Iraq," the Daily Mail quoted an army source as saying.

"Frankly I don't envy his commanders. Losing any soldier under your command is awful. Lose the third in line to the throne and you'd unfortunately go down in history as well," the source added.

An official announcement on the April rotation of units will be made in the next two weeks.