As a solider who saw civilians decimated by roadside bombs and troops left lifeless on the battlefield, few people know the impact of the war in Afghanistan better than Prince Harry.
After the Taliban seized control of the capital Kabul over the weekend, the Duke of Sussex - who served on two tours to the nation with the Army - urged veterans to "support one another".
Today, Harry and wife Meghan Markle released a further statement on their Archewell website, writing that the world is "exceptionally fragile right now".
"As we all feel the many layers of pain due to the situation in Afghanistan, we are left speechless," they said.
"It’s easy to find ourselves feeling powerless, but we can put our values into action — together."
Having set up the Invictus Games to support veterans, Harry's time in Afghanistan left a huge impression - and offers a unique insight into the challenges once again facing the war-torn nation.
Secret deployment and missile scare
Known in his early years as the royal 'wild child', Harry joined the British Army in 2005, training as a recruit at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
The following year, it was revealed his unit, the Household Cavalry's Blues and Royals, was due to be deployed to Iraq.
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The news sparked a slew of speculation over whether it was safe to send the young prince to a war zone - though the royal himself was adamant.
"If they said 'no, you can't go frontline' then I wouldn't drag my sorry arse through Sandhurst and I wouldn't be where I am now,” he said after completing his training.
"The last thing I want to do is have my soldiers away to Iraq or wherever like that and for me to be held back home.”
While it was eventually agreed that Harry would not go to Iraq, the question reared its head again in 2008 ahead of the unit's deployment to Helmand province in Afghanistan.
This time, it was agreed that he would go. However, the news was kept secret - with British newspapers agreeing to keep his mission under wraps.
Working as a Household Cavalry officer, Harry's job was to deploy airstrikes from the ground, but he was also pictured firing a .50 caliber machine gun at Taliban soldiers.
Looking back at his time serving with the prince in 2008, Sergeant Tom Pal, from an anti-tank platoon, recalled how one day their camp was struck by a rocket missile as they sat talking.
“I remember one afternoon before evening scoff or a Gurkha curry was on, I was sitting chatting with both Captain Russell and Prince Harry about random stuff when the camp was hit by a Chinese 107mm rocket… whoosh bang wallop,” Sgt Pal wrote in his book, Coldstream Guards, 10 Years in Afghanistan, Guardsmen’s Stories.
“We had been attacked and we just looked at each other and Captain Russell mentioned we’d better put our body armour and helmet on. Bit late, but we did."
Prince 'furious' over service leak
After 10 weeks of going incognito, Harry was forced to come home when an Australian publication broke the news of his deployment.
According to royal expert Duncan Larcombe, this was one of the hardest moments of his life.
Speaking to Yahoo's The Royal Box, Duncan said: "One of the other real lows in Harry’s life was when he was dragged out of Afghanistan because his secret deployment had hit the papers which meant he had to come home.
"He was absolutely furious."
The mission, however, proved it was possible for the prince to work in a combat zone - a feat that hadn't been repeated since Prince Andrew served in the Falklands War.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Sir Richard Dannatt, former chief of the general staff, explained how the Army was able to keep it under wraps.
"When people come along we just brief them saying: 'When you phone home don't start saying guess who I'm working with," he said.
'One of the best young pilots we've ever seen'
Following the deployment, Harry was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant with The Household Cavalry.
He turned his focus to becoming a pilot, training to fly Apache helicopters and attending gunship training.
Practising at the El Centro Naval Air Facility in California, the prince reportedly stunned instructors by finishing top of his class.
A senior British Army source told The Sun: "It sounds like a con, but Harry is genuinely shaping up to be one of the best young Apache pilots this country has ever seen.
"His US instructors have to treat him the same as everyone else, as we all do in the British Army.
"But they have turned round and said, 'My God, this guy is the real deal.' There are many skills needed to be a top-drawer Apache pilot, but apparently it's Harry's flying that is particularly impressive.
"His handling, hand-eye coordination, reaction speeds - he's a natural. Any doubters who said, 'Harry is royal - he's getting special treatment,' can leave the room now. His talent is leaving his trainers open-mouthed."
As the talented royal continued to impress, it was announced that he would return to Afghanistan in 2012.
He would spend four months based at Camp Bastion in Helmand province, flying attack helicopters in the fight against the Taliban - and this time, the Press was allowed to report on his posting.
That Christmas, the media was invited to join Harry on a tour of his camp.
Dressed in a Santa's hat, the prince gave reporters a glimpse into his daily routine - munching on Wheatabix for breakfast and admitting he rarely managed to make his bed in the morning.
Showing journalists around his living quarters, he introduced two of his campmates, who were playing a game of FIFA in front of a Union Jack flag.
"It's completely normal," he said of his presence. "It's as normal as it's going to get. I'm one of the guys. I don't get treated any differently.
"Our job out here is to make sure the guys are safe on the ground and if that means shooting someone who is shooting at them, then we will do it."
Explaining how he handled operating the weapons, he added: "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... You can ask the guys I thrash in FIFA all the time."
Harry 'blew Taliban to pieces'
Harry's second deployment wasn't all fun and games, however.
After his military service ended, the parents of an American solider revealed the prince had heroically fended off Taliban forces that had ambushed their son's group.
Working as an Apache co-pilot, Harry reportedly showered the militants with bullets as injured troops were airlifted to a secure location.
Sarah Zenetis, the mum of Christopher 'Tripp' Zanetis, told The Sun : “Prince Harry came in with his protection squadron and blew the enemy to pieces.
“They provided enough cover for Tripp to get his men loaded on the helicopter. I believe there were Taliban members killed.”
Harry appeared to separately confirm such a mission had taken place, saying he had fired on the Taliban during operations to support ground troops and rescue injured Afghan and Nato personnel.
"If there's people trying to do bad stuff to our guys, then we'll take them out of the game, I suppose," he said. "Take a life to save a life … the squadron's been out here. Everyone's fired a certain amount."
'I saw some horrendous things'
Following 10 years of service, the royal's Army career came to an end in 2015.
Shortly afterwards, he opened up on the true horrors he had witnessed in Afghanistan, which were a world away from the jokes and FIFA games previously shown to his fans back home.
"I saw some horrendous things," he wrote in The Times. "The tragic injuries and deaths of local people from roadside bombs, some of whom were children; coalition forces lying on the battlefield; and the constant ferrying of injured personnel to the hospital in Camp Bastion.
"Radioing in the details of their injury to the hospital (which sometimes included the phrase 'Op vampire,' when the casualty would need a lot of blood—it still sends shivers down my spine), or lying in bed late at night while our accommodation shook from the downforce of the Chinook and Black Hawk helicopters, was a constant reminder of what was happening all around.
"See it, smell it, hear it, feel it, there was no escaping it."
The two tours left such an impression on Harry that, shortly before ending his service, he set up the Invictus Games in 2014.
The Games was the first international sporting championship for injured servicemen and women, and would “have a long-lasting impact” on those who fought for their country as they continued their recovery, he said.
This week, following the Taliban's declaration of victory in Afghanistan, the Duke issued a joint statement with senior figures from the Games.
The statement read: “What’s happening in Afghanistan resonates across the international Invictus community.
“Many of the participating nations and competitors in the Invictus Games family are bound by a shared experience of serving in Afghanistan over the past two decades, and for several years, we have competed alongside Invictus Games Team Afghanistan.
“We encourage everybody across the Invictus network – and the wider military community – to reach out to each other and offer support for one another.”
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