Prince Harry has strenuously denied claims that he 'boasted' about the number of Taliban he killed while serving in the British Army and has hit out at the "dangerous" spin about his memoir.
The Duke of Sussex, whose tell-all book Spare was published on Tuesday, has come under fire after claiming to have taken out more than two dozen enemies during two tours of Afghanistan.
Protests were sparked by Spare, which on Tuesday became the UK’s fastest selling non-fiction book, due to Harry writing he had engaged in “the taking of human lives” while serving as a helicopter pilot.
"So, my number is 25. It’s not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me," he wrote.
Harry has been promoting his book with a series of TV interviews with broadcasters such as ITV, CNN, CBS and ABC ahead of its release and the final one came on Monday night when he appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
During the one-hour pre-recorded interview, which was aired on Tuesday night, Harry drank tequila shots during a segment of the show before he answered questions about his memoir.
He defended his decision to share the information about the number of people he killed while serving in Afghanistan and blamed critics for the "spin" on his words, adding that it had been "hurtful and challenging" watching the reactions following the book’s publication.
"Without a doubt, the most dangerous lie that they have told, is that I somehow boasted about the number of people that I killed in Afghanistan," he told the show's host.
"I would say that if I heard anybody else, anyone, boasting about that kind of thing, I would be angry. But it's a lie.
"And hopefully now that the book is out, people will be able to see the context, and it is – it’s really troubling and very disturbing that they can get away with it."
He added: "My words are not dangerous, but the spin of my words are very dangerous to my family."
The Duke of Sussex revealed the reason behind disclosing the number of kills at war was in a bid to reduce veteran suicides.
Harry said: "I made a choice to share it because having spent nearly two decades working with veterans all around the world, I think the most important thing is to be honest and to give space to others to be able to share their experiences without any shame.
“And my whole goal, my attempt with sharing that detail, is to reduce the number of suicides."
The autobiography has recorded sales figures of 400,000 copies so far across hardback, ebook and audio formats on its first day of publication, according to publisher Transworld Penguin Random House.
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