American soldier freed - a deserter ?

Guardian :

The controversy over Bergdahl’s release is turning into a major headache for the Obama administration, which calculated that relief and jubilation over the return of the only US prisoner of war would outweigh questions over the prisoner swap.

Several members of his unit expressed dismay on Monday that a man they considered a turncoat would be hailed as a hero instead of being punished for allegedly abandoning his post and indirectly causing the death of other soldiers.

Republicans were swift to condemn the move, with high-profile figures such as Texas senator Ted Cruz, and Mike Rogers, the Michigan congressman who chairs the House intelligence committee, saying on TV on Sunday that the president had endangered the lives of Americans.

Arizona senator John McCain, another Republican critic, described the released detainees – Mohammad Fazl, Mullah Norullah Noori, Mohammed Nabi, Khairullah Khairkhwa, and Abdul Haq Wasiq – as “the hardest of the hardcore."

Several Republicans have also argued that Obama has set a dangerous precedent, providing an incentive for the future capture of Americans. The administration has responded that the US has a long history of conducting prisoner swaps during times of war.

A further row erupted over comments by the White House national security adviser Susan Rice, who defended the prisoner exchange on Sunday, telling ABC that Bergdahl served “with honor and distinction”.

The circumstances of Bergdahl’s capture in 2009 remain unclear, but there is evidence he became disillusioned with the US military in Afghanistan and may have deserted his unit.

Carney declined to say whether the president stands by Rice’s glowing description of the sergeant’s tour of duty, stressing that Obama, as commander-in-chief, had a moral obligation to bring Bergdahl home.

“It was the right thing to do. We in the United States do not leave our men and women behind during an armed conflict," he said. "Five years is a long time to be a prisoner.”

Carney, who was speaking at a White House press briefing, was also unapologetic about Obama's decision to bypass a legal requirement to consult Congress in advance of the release of Guantánamo prisoners.

He said Obama previously made clear his objections to the rule, which he believed unfairly impeded his executive powers, and need to move quickly in the Bergdahl case.

“There were no guarantees that the window of opportunity to recover him would remain open,” Carney said, adding there were concerns over Bergdahl’s health that intensified concerns about his future.

Bergdahl is currently in Germany at a US military base, where a spokesman announced on Monday he is in "stable condition and receiving treatment for conditions requiring hospitalisation". The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center said Bergdahl's treatment included “dietary and nutrition needs after almost five years in captivity", but did not provide further information.

Neither did the military hint when Bergdahl may be transferred to the US, where his parents, Bob and Jani, who have campaigned tirelessly for his release from their home in rural Idaho, are preparing for his return.


The circumstances and consequences of Bergdahl's 2009 disappearance from the base in eastern Afghanistan where he was stationed fuelled a separate outcry from some former comrades who spoke to CNN.

"He walked off," said Jose Baggett, a former private. "He left his guard post. Nobody knows if he defected or he's a traitor or he was kidnapped. What I do know is he was there to protect us and instead he decided to … go and do his own thing. I don't know why he decided to do that, but we spend so much of our resources and some of those resources were soldiers' lives."