By Luke Baker

LONDON, Feb 29 (Reuters) - Britain's military commanders were considering on Friday whether to withdraw Prince Harry from Afghanistan after Internet leaks he had been secretly serving as a combat soldier on front lines for 2-1/2 months.

The leaks have raised concern that Harry, third in line to the British throne as the youngest son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, could now become what officials term a high-value target for al Qaeda and other Islamist militants.

Harry, 23, was deployed to fight against the Taliban in the southern Afghan region of Helmand in December, seven months after plans to send him to Iraq were scrapped following threats from Iraqi militants to kidnap or kill him.

The military posted him only after the British media and selected members of the international press agreed not to report his presence until he had returned from a scheduled 4-6 month deployment. The embargo was broken on Thursday when German, Australian and U.S. Web sites reported he was in Afghanistan.

The breaking of the embargo, a rare agreement in Britain's usually free-for-all media environment, infuriated the military.

"Now that the story is in the public domain, the chief of staff and I will take advice from the operational commanders about whether his deployment can continue," the head of the army, General Richard Dannatt, said in a statement.

"I am very disappointed that foreign Web sites have decided to run this story without consulting us," said Dannatt.

Harry has been responsible for calling in air strikes against Taliban positions, has conducted foot patrols through villages and has fired on suspected militants, media photographs and film footage showed after the embargo was broken.

"EXEMPLARY CONDUCT"

"His conduct on operations in Afghanistan has been exemplary. He has been fully involved in operations and has run the same risks as everyone else," said Dannatt.

In interviews given to reporters sent out to cover his deployment as part of a so-called "pool" arrangement, Harry said he was aware that if his presence in Afghanistan was reported it could make him a target for al Qaeda or other militant groups.

"Once this film comes out ... every single person that supports them will be trying to slot me," he said.

"Now that you come to think about it, it's quite worrying. But as I say, now that this film has been made and now ... people will know I'm out here, no doubt I'll be a top target."

Talking about his experiences on the front lines, Harry said: "I haven't really had a shower for four days, I haven't washed my clothes for a week. It's very nice to be sort of a normal person for once."

It was Harry's grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, who broke the news to him that he would be allowed to go to Afghanistan.

Harry was at one time dubbed a royal "Wild Child" by British tabloids for underage drink and drugs antics.

Before he was deployed, Harry told reporters he sometimes wished he was not a member of the royal family as it made it difficult to do things that he enjoyed, including being a soldier in the army.

"I wish that quite a lot actually," he said, adding his older brother Prince William shared the view.

"William and I have said numerous times that there's a lot of opportunities that we miss out on -- as well as we also got a lot of chances -- for who we are."

(Editing by Ralph Gowling)

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