Jump to content

Bowe Bergdahl

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 99.40.198.205 (talk) at 15:41, 2 June 2014 (→External links). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Bowe R. Bergdahl
Birth nameBowe Robert Bergdahl
Born (1986-03-28) March 28, 1986 (age 38)
Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S.
AllegianceUnknown
Service / branch United States Army
Years of service2008–present[1]
Rank Sergeant (promoted in absentia)
Unit1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division
Battles / warsGlobal War on Terrorism
RelationsJani Larson (mother)
Robert Bergdahl (father)
Sky Albrecht (sister)

Bowe Robert Bergdahl (born March 28, 1986) is a United States Army soldier who was in the captivity of the Taliban-aligned Haqqani network in Afghanistan from June 2009 until his release on May 31, 2014.[2][3][4][5]

Early life and education

Bergdahl was born on March 28, 1986, in Sun Valley, Idaho, to Jani (née Larson) and Robert "Bob" Bergdahl, a private logistic company driver.[6][7][8] Bergdahl has an older sister, Sky Albrecht,[9][10][11] and was home schooled by his mother Jani in Hailey, Idaho. He is of Norwegian descent.

He received a GED certificate through the College of Southern Idaho by the time he was in his early 20s.[12][13][7][14] As an adult, Bergdahl studied and practiced fencing and martial arts before switching to ballet classes at the Sun Valley Ballet School in Ketchum, Idaho.[12][7] He never owned a car, riding his bicycle everywhere.[14]

Career

Bergdahl graduated from infantry school in Fort Benning, Georgia, in the fall of 2008.[6] He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Richardson, Alaska.[15]

According to fellow soldier Specialist Jason Fry, Bergdahl was "quiet. He wasn't one of the troublemakers – he was focused and well-behaved...Bowe sat alone on his cot, studying maps of Afghanistan." Bergdahl told Fry before their deployment to Afghanistan, "If this deployment is lame, I'm just going to walk off into the mountains of Pakistan." [16]

Bergdahl's unit was sent to an outpost called Mest-Malak in Afghanistan to conduct counterinsurgency operations. Bergdhal learned how to speak Pashto, and according to Fry, Bergdahl "began to gravitate away from his unit", spending "more time with the Afghans than he did with his platoon". Bergdahl's father described his son to military investigators as "psychologically isolated".[17]

Prior to capture

On June 25, 2009, Bowe's battalion suffered its first casualty. First Lieutenant Brian Bradshaw was killed in a blast from a roadside bomb near the village of Yaya Kheyl, not far from Bowe's outpost. According to Rolling Stone,[18] Bowe's father believes that Bradshaw and Bowe had grown close at the National Training Center, and his death darkened his son's mood.

Last e-mail to parents

On June 27, 2009, according to Rolling Stone,[19] Bowe sent a final e-mai­l to his parents: "The future is too good to waste on lies. And life is way too short to care for the damnation of others, as well as to spend it helping fools with their ideas that are wrong. I have seen their ideas and I am ashamed to even be american. The horror of the self-righteous arrogance that they thrive in. It is all revolting."

His e-mail went on to describe his disillusionment with the U.S. Army: "In the US army you are cut down for being honest... but if you are a conceited brown nosing shit bag you will be allowed to do what ever you want, and you will be handed your higher rank... The system is wrong. I am ashamed to be an american. And the title of US soldier is just the lie of fools...I am sorry for everything here. These people need help, yet what they get is the most conceited country in the world telling them that they are nothing and that they are stupid, that they have no idea how to live. We don't even care when we hear each other talk about running their children down in the dirt streets with our armored trucks... We make fun of them in front of their faces, and laugh at them for not understanding we are insulting them...I am sorry for everything. The horror that is america is disgusting...There are a few more boxes coming to you guys. Feel free to open them, and use them."

Accusations of desertion

Some members of the military who served with Bergdahl have alleged that Bergdahl may have been a deserter at the time of his capture.[20][21][22]

Captivity and release

On June 30, 2009, near the town of Yahya Kheyl in the Paktika Province, Berdahl went missing under the cover of darkness.[23] Accounts of his capture differ. The version offered by Bergdahl, in a video, is that he was captured when he fell behind on a patrol.[2] Taliban sources allege he was ambushed after becoming drunk off base; U.S. military sources deny that claim, stating, "The Taliban are known for lying and what they are claiming [is] not true".[4] Other sources said Bergdahl walked off his base after his shift[24] or that he was grabbed from a latrine.[25] A Department of Defense spokesperson said, "I'm glad to see he appears unharmed, but again, this is a Taliban propaganda video. They are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law."[2][3]

General Nabi Mullakheil of the Afghan National Police said the capture occurred in Paktika Province.[2] Other sources say that he was captured by a Taliban group led by Maulvi Sangin, who has moved him to Ghazni Province.[3] Two Pashto-language leaflets were distributed by the U.S. military in seeking Bergdahl.[4] One showed a smiling GI shaking hands with Afghan children, with a caption that called him a guest in Afghanistan. The other showed a door being broken down, and threatened that those holding Bergdahl would be hunted down.

He was held by the Haqqani network, an insurgent group affiliated with the Taliban, probably somewhere in Pakistan.[23] Since then, the Taliban have released five videos showing him in captivity. The Taliban originally demanded $1 million[26] and the release of 21 Afghan prisoners and Aafia Siddiqui in exchange for Bergdahl's release. They threatened to execute Bergdahl if Siddiqui was not released. Most of the Afghan prisoners sought were being held at Guantanamo Bay.[27][28]

The Taliban later reduced its demand to five Taliban prisoners in exchange for Bergdahl's release.[29] His rank was private first class when captured. He was promoted in absentia to sergeant on June 17, 2011.[30]

First Taliban video of Bergdahl

Wikinews has related news:

On July 18, 2009, the Taliban released a video showing the captured Bergdahl.[2] In the video, Bergdahl appeared downcast and frightened. A Department of Defense statement issued on July 19 confirmed that Bergdahl was declared "missing/whereabouts unknown" on July 1, and his status was changed to "missing/captured" on July 3.[31]

In the 28-minute video, his captors held up his dog tags to establish that the captured man was Bergdahl.[2] Bergdahl gave the date as July 14 and mentioned an attack that occurred that day.[32][33][34]

Follow-up videos are released

In December 2009, five months after Bergdahl's disappearance, the media arm of the Afghan Taliban announced the release of a new video of "a U.S. soldier captured in Afghanistan", titled "One of Their People Testified". In the announcement, the Taliban did not name the American, but the only U.S. soldier known to be in captivity was Bergdahl. U.S. military officials had been searching for Bergdahl, but it was not publicly known whether he was being held in Afghanistan or in neighboring Pakistan, an area off-limits to U.S. forces based in Afghanistan.[35] On December 25, another video was released that showed Bergdahl in a combat uniform and helmet.[36][37] He described his place of birth, deployment to Afghanistan and subsequent capture. He then made several statements regarding his humane treatment by his captors, contrasting this to the abuses suffered by insurgents in prisons. He finished by saying that the United States should not be involved in Afghanistan and that its presence there is akin to the Vietnam War. On April 7, 2010, the Taliban released a third video of Bergdahl, now with a full head of hair and a beard, pleading for the release of Afghan prisoners held at Guantanamo and Bagram. In November 2010, Bergdahl appeared briefly in a fourth video.[38] In May 2011, Bergdahl appeared briefly in a fifth video.[39]

In December 2011, it was reported that Bergdahl tried to escape three months earlier but was recaptured after three days.[40] In June 2013, Bergdahl's parents received a letter from him through the Red Cross.[41] In January 2014, it was reported that the United States received another proof of life video. The video is dated December 14, 2013 and in it, Bergdahl mentions the death of South African president Nelson Mandela, proving that the video was filmed recently. On May 31, 2014, Bergdahl was released from captivity.[42][43]

Threat of reprisal

On February 4, 2010, the Afghan Taliban demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani scientist who was convicted by a U.S. court on charges of attempting to murder U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, and threatened to execute Bergdahl if their demand was not met.[44][45] The Taliban claimed that members of Siddiqui's family had requested their assistance. [citation needed]

Reports of joining the Taliban

In August 2010 it was reported that a Taliban commander named Haji Nadeem said Bergdahl was helping to train the Taliban in bomb-making and infantry tactics. The Pentagon dismissed the reports as Taliban propaganda.[46][47]

Search efforts for Bergdahl

According to soldiers from Bergdahl's platoon, fellow soldiers described an increase in attacks against the United States in Paktika Provice in the days and weeks following Bergdahl's disappearance. [48]

At least six soldiers were killed searching for Bergdahl. Staff Sergeant Sergeant Clayton Bowen and Private First Class Morris Walker were killed by an IED in the search for Bergdahl on August 18, 2009. Staff Sergeant Kurt Curtiss was killed on August 26. 2nd Lieutenant Darryn Andrews and Private First Class Matthew Michael Martinek were killed in the Yahya Khail District on September 4. Staff Sergeant Michael Murphrey was killed by an IED at the Forward Operating Base in Sharana on September 5. [49]

Release efforts

For months, U.S. negotiators were seeking to arrange the transfer of five Taliban detainees held at Guantanamo Bay military prison to the Gulf state of Qatar. The transfer was intended as one of a series of confidence-building measures designed to open the door to political talks between the Taliban and Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government.[50] That move – at the center of U.S. strategy for ending the long, costly conflict in Afghanistan – was supposed to lead directly to Bowe's release. The Taliban has consistently called for the United States to release those held at Guantanamo Bay in exchange for freeing Western prisoners. But the Guantanamo transfer proposal, which legally required notification to Congress, ground to a halt when the Taliban rejected U.S. conditions designed to ensure transferred Taliban would not slip away and re-emerge as military leaders.[51] Ultimately, the Obama administration agreed to the prisoner exchange allowing Bergdahl to be released on May 31, 2014.[52]

Release on May 31, 2014

On May 31, 2014, U.S. officials from the White House and Pentagon announced that Bergdahl had been released by his captors and recovered by U.S. special operations forces in eastern Afghanistan. The release was brokered by the American, Qatar and Afghanistan governments with the Taliban, in exchange for five Guantanamo Bay detainees transferred to Qatari custody for at least one year. Though law states that the President must inform Congress at least 30 days in advance of any transfers at Guantanamo Bay, no notice was given. On 10:30 a.m. (ET) May 31, 2014, Bergdahl was handed over by 18 Taliban members in eastern Afghanistan,[53] near Khost on the Pakistani border, in what was described as a "peaceful handover".[54]

Bergdahl was treated by U.S. military medical staff at an undisclosed base in east Afghanistan. He was then transferred to Bagram Airfield, before being flown to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany for specialist medical treatment and is expected to return home to Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas for further recovery[55]

President Obama and U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel thanked Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, and the government of Afghanistan for their assistance in the rescue of Bergdahl.[56]

The Taliban detainees – known as the "Taliban five"[57] – who were transferred from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to custody in Doha, Qatar are Mohammad Fazl, Khairullah Khairkhwa, Abdul Haq Wasiq, Norullah Noori, and Mohammad Nabi Omari.[58] They are the Taliban army chief of staff, a Taliban deputy minister of intelligence, a former Taliban interior minister and two other senior Taliban figures.[59]

Some Republican lawmakers have said that the prisoner swap that led to Bergdahl's release may have been illegal and was an instance of "negotiating with terrorists".[60] The [[National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013] mandates that all prisoner transfers from Guantanamo Bay require 30 days notice to Congress, which was not done in this case.[61] When Obama signed the bill, he released a signing statement saying that the restriction interfered with the President's executive power as commander in chief. [62] The White House released a statement ackowledging that the release did not comply with the law but cited the President's signing statement, and "unique and exigent circumstances" as justification.[63][64]

See also

  • Ahmed Kousay al-Taie, United States Army, the last American serviceman missing in the Iraq War; his remains were recovered in February 2012
  • Michael Scott Speicher, a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot shot down in the Persian Gulf War whose status became the subject of uncertainty and headlines, and whose death was not confirmed until August 2, 2009, after positive identification of his remains after they were discovered near his crash site 100 miles west of Baghdad, Iraq.

References

  1. ^ Hastings, Michael (June 21, 2012). "The Last American Prisoner of War". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Pamela Hess, Lolita Baldur (July 19, 2009). "Bowe Bergdahl: Soldier Captured In Afghanistan Identified As 23-Year-Old Idahoan". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  3. ^ a b c Declan Walsh (July 19, 2009). "Taliban release video of captured US soldier". The Guardian. London, UK. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  4. ^ a b c "U.S. soldier captured by Taliban: 'I'm afraid'". CNN. July 19, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  5. ^ "Obama statement on Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl". The Washington Post. 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  6. ^ a b "Bowe Bergdahl: America's Last Prisoner of War by Michael Hastings". Rolling Stone. 2012-06-07. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  7. ^ a b c "Who is Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl?". KBOI 2. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  8. ^ "Dr. Craig Larson dead at 73". The Warren Tribune. February 13, 2007. p. 10A.
  9. ^ "Idaho Mountain Express: Naval Academy is first class for Michael Albrecht". Mtexpress.com. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  10. ^ "Recent Obituaries". Syvnews.com. 2007-02-25. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  11. ^ Hastings, Michael (2012-06-07). "Bowe Bergdahl: America's Last Prisoner of War". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  12. ^ a b Bumiller, Elisabeth (May 13, 2012). "Idahoan's Unlikely Journey to Life as a Taliban Prisoner". The New York Times.
  13. ^ AP Photo/The Bergdahl Family (2012-01-05). "Taliban may use Bowe Bergdahl, captured Idaho soldier, to push for talks with U.S." OregonLive.com. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  14. ^ a b "Family of captured soldier moved by outpouring of support". OregonLive.com. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  15. ^ John Miller (July 19, 2009). "Soldier held in Afghanistan is 23-year-old Idahoan". Associated Press. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  16. ^ "America's Last Prisoner of War".
  17. ^ "America's Last Prisoner of War".
  18. ^ "America's Last Prisoner of War".
  19. ^ "America's Last Prisoner of War".
  20. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/01/us/bergdahl-deserter-or-hero/
  21. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/05/31/military-online-reaction-mixed-to-bergdahl-release-/9819451/
  22. ^ http://www.navytimes.com/article/20140531/NEWS/305310046/Military-community-reaction-mixed-Bergdahl-release
  23. ^ a b "'Frustrated': Dad of Taliban prisoner Bowe Bergdahl takes matters into own hands". Worldnews.msnbc.msn.com. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  24. ^ "Parents of captured GI plead for privacy". MSNBC. 2009-07-20. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  25. ^ Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl: Flight to freedom
  26. ^ "Woodside Elementary students plead for Taliban to release Bergdahl". Magicvalley.com. 2010-10-12. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  27. ^ "Pakistan News Service". PakTribune. Archived from the original on 2010-02-08. Retrieved 2010-05-13.
  28. ^ Heintz, Jim; Amir Shah (December 25, 2009). "Family pleas for captive US soldier's release". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  29. ^ "AP Exclusive: Taliban offer to free US soldier Bowe Bergdahl - AP Exclusive: Taliban offer to free US soldier Bowe Bergdahl". Idahostatejournal.com. 2013-06-20. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  30. ^ "Press release 14580". U.S. Department of Defense.
  31. ^ United States Department of Defense (July 19, 2009). "DoD Announces Soldier Status as Missing-Captured". United States Department of Defense. Retrieved December 25, 2009.
  32. ^ Miller, John (July 19, 2009). "Pentagon IDs Soldier Held by Taliban". CBS News. Associated Press. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  33. ^ Video: U.S. Soldier, Bowie Bergdahl, Captured By Taliban. CNN. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  34. ^ "U.S. soldier captured by Taliban: 'I'm afraid'". CNN. July 19, 2009. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  35. ^ Riechmann, Deb (December 16, 2009). "Terror monitor: Tape of captured US soldier due". ABC News. Associated Press. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  36. ^ "VIDEO: Talibani objavili snimku zarobljenog vojnika (Video: Talibans publish a recording of captured soldier)" (in Croatian). Dnevnik.hr. December 25, 2009. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  37. ^ "Taliban video shows captive US soldier Bowe Bergdahl". BBC News. December 25, 2009. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  38. ^ "Taliban video thought to show captured spc". Armytimes.com. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  39. ^ "Dad of Captive U.S. Soldier Makes Public Appeal to Pakistan". Fox News. May 7, 2011.
  40. ^ Sami Yousafzai; Ron Moreau (7 December 2011). "U.S. Prisoner Bowe Bergdahl's Failed Attempt to Escape From Taliban". The Daily Beast. Retrieved September 2, 2013. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  41. ^ "POW Bowe Bergdahl's parents receive letter from captive son". CBS News. 2013-06-06. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  42. ^ "Source: Missing U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl seen in video". CNN.com. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  43. ^ Miklaszewski, Jim (2014-01-15). "U.S. has recent 'proof of life' video of POW Bowe Bergdahl". NBC News. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  44. ^ Paktribune staff (February 5, 2010). "Taliban to execute US soldier if Aafia not released". paktribune.
  45. ^ Mushtaq Yusufzai (February 5, 2010). "Taliban to execute US soldier if Aafia not released". The News International. Archived from the original on February 6, 2010. The Afghan Taliban on Thursday demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani scientist who has been convicted by the U.S. court on charges of her alleged attempt to murder U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, and threatened to execute an American soldier they were holding currently. They claimed Siddiqui's family had approached the Taliban network through a Jirga of notables, seeking their assistance to put pressure on the U.S. to provide her justice.
  46. ^ Zatkulak, Karen (2010-08-23). "NBC: Reports about captured Idaho soldier not true". Ktvb.com. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  47. ^ "Taliban: Captured Soldier Joined Cause". Fox News. 2010-08-22. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  48. ^ "Fellow soldiers call Bowe Bergdahl a deserter, not a hero". CNN. June 1, 2014.
  49. ^ "Fellow soldiers call Bowe Bergdahl a deserter, not a hero". CNN. June 1, 2014.
  50. ^ Ryan, Missy (May 9, 2012). "Family pleads for U.S. prisoner at heart of Afghan peace push". Reuters. Washington, D.C.
  51. ^ Rosenberg, Matthew; Nordland, Rod (October 1, 2012). "U.S. Abandoning Hopes for Taliban Peace Deal". New York Times.
  52. ^ "Taliban-held U.S. soldier released in exchange for Afghan detainees". The Washington Post. 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
  53. ^ "US soldier held captive by Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly five years freed". Fox News. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  54. ^ Starr, Barbara (31 May 2014). "Bowe Bergdahl, U.S. soldier held in Afghanistan, freed in apparent swap". CNN. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  55. ^ "US soldier Bowe Bergdahl freed by Taliban in Afghanistan". 31 May 2014. BBC News. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  56. ^ "United States secures release of soldier from Taliban". Afghanistan News.Net. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  57. ^ "Taliban five arrive in Qatar after swap deal". AlJazeera. 1 June 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  58. ^ Howell, Kellan (31 May 2014). "Terror suspects freed by Obama admin. were labeled 'high risk' in 2008: report". The Washington Times. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  59. ^ Joscelyn, Thomas (31 May 2014). "Five of the Most Dangerous Taliban Commanders in U.S. Custody Exchanged for American Captive". www.WeeklyStandard.com. Retrieved 1 Jun 2014.
  60. ^ http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/DC-Decoder/2014/0601/Obama-s-Bowe-Bergdahl-prisoner-swap-Was-it-illegal
  61. ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/bergdahl-release-arrangement-could-threaten-the-safety-of-americans-republicans-say/2014/05/31/35e47a2a-e8ff-11e3-afc6-a1dd9407abcf_print.html
  62. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/04/us/politics/obama-signs-defense-bill-with-conditions.html?_r=1&
  63. ^ http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/gop-lawmakers-say-administration-broke-law-prisoner-swap/
  64. ^ http://www.morningjournal.com/general-news/20140602/gop-lawmakers-prisoner-exchange-violated-law
Wikiquote has quotations related to Bowe Bergdahl.

Template:Persondata

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Bowe_Bergdahl&oldid=611244787"