Report: Bergdahl deserted, American soldiers died trying to find him

[Little-Acorn]

Is this true?

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We Lost Soldiers in the Hunt for Bergdahl, a Guy Who Walked Off in the Dead of Night - The Daily Beast

I served in the same battalion in Afghanistan and participated in the attempts to retrieve him throughout the summer of 2009. After we redeployed, every member of my brigade combat team received an order that we were not allowed to discuss what happened to Bergdahl for fear of endangering him. He is safe, and now it is time to speak the truth.

And that the truth is: Bergdahl was a deserter, and soldiers from his own unit died trying to track him down.

On the night prior to his capture, Bergdahl pulled guard duty at OP Mest, a small outpost about two hours south of the provincial capitol. The next morning, Bergdahl failed to show for the morning roll call. The soldiers in 2nd Platoon, Blackfoot Company discovered his rifle, helmet, body armor and web gear in a neat stack. He had, however, taken his compass. His fellow soldiers later mentioned his stated desire to walk from Afghanistan to India.

Make no mistake: Bergdahl did not "lag behind on a patrol,” as was cited in news reports at the time. There was no patrol that night. Bergdahl was relieved from guard duty, and instead of going to sleep, he fled the outpost on foot. He deserted. I’ve talked to members of Bergdahl’s platoon—including the last Americans to see him before his capture. I’ve reviewed the relevant documents. That’s what happened.


(Full text of the article can be read at the above URL)

 

[Claudette]

Thats what I've been reading as well.

This guy is no prize and will proably face courtmashal and Leavenworth.

 

[waltky]

Pentagon says Bergdahl went AWOL...

US concluded in 2010 that Bergdahl walked away
Jun 2,`14 WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Pentagon investigation concluded in 2010 that Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl walked away from his unit, and after an initial flurry of searching the military decided not to exert extraordinary efforts to rescue him, according to a former senior defense official who was involved in the matter.

Instead, the U.S. government pursued negotiations to get him back over the following five years of his captivity - a track that led to his release over the weekend. Bergdahl was being checked and treated Monday at a U.S. military hospital in Germany as questions mounted at home over the swap that resulted in his freedom in exchange for the release of five detainees who were sent to Qatar from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo, Cuba. Even in the first hours of Bergdahl's handoff to U.S. special forces in eastern Afghanistan, it was clear this would not be an uncomplicated yellow-ribbon celebration. Five terrorist suspects also walked free, stirring a debate over whether the exchange would heighten the risk of other Americans being snatched as bargaining chips and whether the released detainees - several senior Taliban figures among them - would find their way back to the fight.

U.S. officials said Sunday that Bergdahl's health and safety appeared in jeopardy, prompting rapid action. "Had we waited and lost him," said national security adviser Susan Rice, "I don't think anybody would have forgiven the United States government." She said he had lost considerable weight and faced an "acute" situation. Yet she also said he appeared to be "in good physical condition." One official, who spoke on grounds of anonymity because the person wasn't authorized to discuss the subject by name, said there were concerns about Bergdahl's mental and emotional as well as physical health. On Monday, a U.S. military hospital in Germany reported Bergdahl in "stable condition and receiving treatment for conditions requiring hospitalization" after arriving from Afghanistan. The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center said Bergdahl's treatment "includes attention to dietary and nutrition needs after almost five years in captivity" but declined to release further details. It said there "is no pre-determined amount of time involved in the reintegration process" for the 28-year-old soldier.

Two officials said Monday that the Taliban may have been concerned about his health, as well, since the U.S. had sent the message that it would respond harshly if any harm befell him in captivity. Republicans in the U.S. said the deal for Bergdahl's release could set a troubling precedent. Arizona Sen. John McCain said of the Guantanamo detainees who were exchanged for him: "These are the hardest of the hard core." And in Kabul Monday, the Afghan Foreign Ministry called the swap "against the norms of international law" if it came against the five imprisoned Taliban detainees' will. The ministry said: "No state can transfer another country's citizen to a third country and put restriction on their freedom." Tireless campaigners for their son's freedom, Bob and Jani Bergdahl thanked all who were behind the effort to retrieve him. "You were not left behind," Bob Bergdahl told reporters, as if speaking to his son. "We are so proud of the way this was carried out." He spoke in Boise, Idaho, wearing a long bushy beard he'd grown to honor his son, as residents in the sergeant's hometown of Hailey prepared for a homecoming celebration.

The five detainees left Guantanamo aboard a U.S. military aircraft flying to Qatar, which served as go-between in the negotiations. They are to be banned from leaving Qatar for at least a year. Among the five: a Taliban deputy intelligence minister, a former Taliban interior minister with ties to the late al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and a figure linked by human rights monitors to mass killings of Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan in 2000 and 2001. Questions persisted, too, about the circumstances of Bergdahl's 2009 capture. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel declined to comment on earlier reports that the sergeant had walked away from his unit, disillusioned with the war. Such matters "will be dealt with later," Hagel said. But the former Pentagon official said it was "incontrovertible" that he walked away from his unit.

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See also:

Afghan government angered by Bergdahl, Taliban prisoners swap
June 2, 2014 — The Afghan government Monday sharply criticized the prisoner swap where five former Taliban leaders were released from U.S. detention in return for the only American prisoner of war in Afghanistan, saying it violated an agreement with Washington.

“Recently, five Afghan nationals were released in an exchange for Mr. Bowe Bergdahl, and have been transferred to Qatar, which was against a prior understanding with the Afghan government,” said a statement released by the office of President Hamid Karzai. Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported Monday that a 2010 Pentagon probe found Bergdahl had walked away from his unit, and that after an early search, the DOD decided to rely on negotiations rather than an extraordinary rescue effort. The AP cited a former senior defense official involved in the matter as saying it was "incontrovertible" that he walked away from his unit.

The investigation was broader than a criminal inquiry, the AP reported the official as saying, and it didn't formally accuse Bergdahl of desertion. In interviews, members of his unit portrayed him as a naive, "delusional" person who thought he could help the Afghan people by leaving his army post, the official said. According to Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Shakaib Mustaghni, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had assured Karzai in a recent phone conversation that the Taliban detainees exchanged for U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl would be released to Afghan custody. Instead, they were sent to the Gulf nation of Qatar where their movements will be restricted for a year under an agreement between Washington and the Taliban. This restriction, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement says, “is completely against all accepted international laws on human rights.”

A Karzai spokesman backed up the foreign ministries claims. Karzai’s administration has in the past released prisoners considered dangerous by its U.S. allies. Just last February, 65 such inmates were freed from Bagram prison despite protests by NATO and the U.S. embassy in Kabul. There was no immediate response from the State Department to the Afghan claim.

It’s the latest in a long list of grievances that has badly damaged relations between Kabul and Washington. This may change soon, however, because Karzai’s term is ending soon and both of the two candidates seeking to replace him in the coming second round of presidential elections have said mending ties with Washington will be a priority. “I think (Karzai’s government is) very upset at the way that it has happened, in that they haven’t been consulted,” said Borhan Osman, an analyst with the Afghanistan Analysts Network.

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[depotoo]

Well, at least someone is admitting he was awol. Some I have heard say they think his 5 years was enough punishment. I don't think that will go over well with alot of military.