HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Beaudry Robert "Bowe" Bergdahl (born March 28, 1986) is a former
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
soldier who was held captive from 2009 to 2014 by the
Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...
-aligned
Haqqani network The Haqqani network is an Afghan Islamist group, built around the family of the same name, that has used asymmetric warfare in Afghanistan to fight against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and US-led NATO forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanis ...
in
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
and
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. Bergdahl was captured after leaving his post on June 30, 2009. The circumstances under which Bergdahl went missing and how he was captured by the Taliban have since become subjects of intense media scrutiny. He was released on May 31, 2014, as part of a prisoner exchange for five high ranking Taliban members who were being held at the detention center at Guantanamo Bay. Bergdahl was tried by general
court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...
on charges of
desertion Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which ...
and misbehavior before the enemy, and on October 16, 2017, he entered a guilty plea before a military judge at
Fort Bragg Fort Bragg (formerly Fort Liberty from 2023–2025) is a United States Army, U.S. Army Military base, military installation located in North Carolina. It ranks among the largest military bases in the world by population, with more than 52,000 m ...
,
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
. On November 3, 2017, he was sentenced to be dishonorably discharged, reduced in rank to private and fined $1,000 per month from his pay for ten months, with no prison time. The fine and reduction in rank took effect immediately, while the discharge was stayed pending appeals to the
Army Court of Criminal Appeals In the United States military, the Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) is an appellate court that reviews certain court martial convictions of Army personnel. Jurisdiction In the United States, courts-martial are conducted under the Uniform ...
and later to the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, which affirmed the sentence on August 27, 2020. Bergdahl then filed in the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a United States district court, federal district court in Washington, D.C. Along with the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and ...
to have a U.S. federal judge review his sentence. On July 25, 2023, the judge issued a ruling that voided his 2017 court-martial conviction.


Early life and education

Bergdahl was born in 1986 in
Sun Valley, Idaho Sun Valley is a resort city in the western United States, in Blaine County, Idaho, adjacent to the city of Ketchum in the Wood River valley. The population was 1,783 at the 2020 census. The elevation of Sun Valley (at the Lodge) is above se ...
. He is of Norwegian and Swedish ancestry. He has an older sister. Both Bergdahl and his sister were home schooled by their mother in Hailey, Idaho. The family attended Sovereign Redeemer Presbyterian Church, an
Orthodox Presbyterian Church The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) is a confessional Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States, with additional congregations in Canada, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyte ...
. Bergdahl received a GED certificate through the
College of Southern Idaho College of Southern Idaho (CSI) is a public community college in Twin Falls, Idaho. It also has off-campus programs in Jerome, Hailey, Burley and Gooding. Together with the College of Eastern Idaho, College of Western Idaho and North Ida ...
. As an adult, Bergdahl studied and practiced
fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...
and
martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...
before changing to
ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
classes at the Sun Valley Ballet School in Ketchum, Idaho. He spent time in a Buddhist monastery between 2007 and 2008.


Military career

In 2006, Bergdahl entered
basic training Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique dema ...
in the
United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...
but was discharged after twenty-six days for psychological reasons, receiving an " uncharacterized discharge" as an entry-level separation. In 2008, Bergdahl enlisted in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
and graduated from the Infantry School at
Fort Benning Fort Benning (named Fort Moore from 2023–2025) is a United States Army post in the Columbus, Georgia area. Located on Georgia's border with Alabama, Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve compone ...
, Georgia. He was then assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Richardson, Alaska. According to a fellow soldier, Specialist Jason Fry, Bergdahl, whom Fry described as a loner but "focused and well-behaved", told him before deploying to
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
: "If this deployment is lame, I'm just going to walk off into the mountains of
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
." Instead of socializing with his comrades during
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
, he studied maps of Afghanistan. Bergdahl's unit deployed to outpost Mest-Malak in May 2009, where they conducted
counterinsurgency Counterinsurgency (COIN, or NATO spelling counter-insurgency) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the ac ...
operations. Bergdahl began learning to speak
Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...
and, according to Fry, "to gravitate away from his unit pendingmore time with the Afghans than he did with his platoon". Bergdahl's father described his son to military investigators as " psychologically isolated".


Before capture

On June 25, 2009, Bergdahl's battalion suffered its first casualty:
First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...
Brian Bradshaw was killed by a roadside bomb near the village of Yaya Kheyl, not far from Bergdahl's outpost. Bergdahl's father believes that Bradshaw and Bergdahl had grown close at the National Training Center and that Bradshaw's death darkened Bergdahl's mood.


Last e-mail to parents

On June 27, 2009, Bergdahl sent an e-mail to his parents before he was captured: Bob Bergdahl responded to his son's final message not long after he received it:


Last communication with platoon

A former senior military officer briefed on the investigation into Bergdahl's disappearance stated that on the night he went missing, Bergdahl left a note. The existence of such a note was disputed by the
Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...
during a meeting with Congress on the release of Bergdahl, according to Senator
Saxby Chambliss Clarence Saxby Chambliss (; born November 10, 1943) is an American lawyer and retired politician who was a United States Senate, United States Senator from Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia from 2003 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party (Unite ...
.White House defends prisoner swap in tense Hill meeting
''
Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...
''
In his sworn statement, Bergdahl denied leaving a note. Investigating officer Major General Kenneth Dahl acknowledged that there was no evidence of his leaving a note.


Captivity


Circumstances of Bergdahl's disappearance

Bergdahl walked away from his battalion on the night of June 30, 2009, at observation post (OP) Mest near the town of Yahya Kheyl in
Paktika Province Paktika (Pashto: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktika has a population of about 789,000 residents, who are mostly ethnic Pashtuns but sma ...
. Accounts of his capture differ. In a video, Bergdahl said he was captured when he fell behind on a
patrol A patrol is commonly a group of personnel, such as law enforcement officers, military personnel, or security personnel, that are assigned to monitor or secure a specific geographic area. Etymology The word "patrol" is derived from the Frenc ...
. 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 snot true." 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 International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...
." Other sources said Bergdahl walked off base after his shift or that he was grabbed from a
latrine A latrine is a toilet or an even simpler facility that is used as a toilet within a sanitation system. For example, it can be a communal trench in the earth in a camp to be used as emergency sanitation, a hole in the ground ( pit latrine), or ...
. In 2009, the U.S. Department of Defense attributed his disappearance to "walking off his base in eastern Afghanistan with three Afghan counterparts and was believed to have been taken prisoner". General Nabi Mullakheil of the
Afghan National Police The Afghan National Police (ANP; ; ), also known as the Afghan Police, is the national police force of the Afghanistan, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, serving as a single law enforcement agency all across the country. The first police officer i ...
said the capture occurred in
Paktika Province Paktika (Pashto: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktika has a population of about 789,000 residents, who are mostly ethnic Pashtuns but sma ...
. Other sources say that he was captured by a Taliban group led by Mullah Sangeen Zadran, who moved him to
Ghazni Province Ghazni (; ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in southeastern Afghanistan. The province contains 19 Districts of Afghanistan, districts, encompassing over a thousand villages and roughly 1.3 million people, making it the 5th most ...
. He was held by the
Haqqani network The Haqqani network is an Afghan Islamist group, built around the family of the same name, that has used asymmetric warfare in Afghanistan to fight against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and US-led NATO forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanis ...
, an insurgent group affiliated with the Taliban, probably somewhere in Pakistan. Bergdahl was a Private First Class when captured; he was promoted ''in absentia'' to Specialist on June 19, 2010, and to
Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...
on June 17, 2011. According to soldiers in Bergdahl's platoon, the morning when Bergdahl was discovered to be missing, his equipment was found neatly stacked, with his compass missing. A Pentagon investigation in 2010 concluded that Bergdahl walked away from his unit. Bergdahl had written (prior to his departure) e-mails to his parents in which he reported having become disillusioned with the war effort and bothered by the treatment of Afghans by American soldiers. He said in his e-mail he was ashamed to be American.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: appointment; gra ...
Martin Dempsey said: "The questions about this particular soldier's conduct are separate from our effort to recover ''any'' U.S. service member in enemy captivity" and that the military will investigate how Bergdahl was captured. "Like any American, he is innocent until proven guilty. ..Our Army's leaders will not look away from misconduct if it occurred. In the meantime, we will continue to care for him and his family." Some soldiers who had served with Bergdahl have called him a deserter. Nathan Bradley Bethea, a member of Bergdahl's battalion, wrote a '' Daily Beast'' article stating that there was no patrol the night that Bergdahl went missing and that Bergdahl had talked about his desire to walk to India. Bethea wrote that the brigade received an order not to discuss Bergdahl due to safety reasons, but since he had been found there was no need for further silence. Cody Full, a member of Bergdahl's platoon, said, "He knowingly deserted and put thousands of people in danger because he did. We swore to an oath and we upheld ours. He did not." Full said that Bergdahl had mailed his computer and other possessions home prior to his disappearance.Eric Schmitt; Helene Cooper; Charlie Savage (June 2, 2014
Bowe Bergdahl's Vanishing Before Capture Angered His Unit
''The New York Times''


Contacts by Taliban

On July 18, 2009, the
Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...
released a video showing Bergdahl, who appeared downcast and frightened. A
Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...
statement issued the following day confirmed that Bergdahl had been declared " missing/whereabouts unknown" on July1 and that his status had been changed to "missing/ captured" on July 3. In the twenty-eight–minute video, his captors held up his dog tags to establish that the captured man was Bergdahl. Bergdahl gave the date as July 14 and mentioned an attack that occurred that day. On December 25, 2009, five months after Bergdahl's disappearance, the media arm of the Taliban released a video of "a U.S. soldier captured in Afghanistan" entitled "One of Their People Testified". 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 Pakistan. On December 25, another video was released showing Bergdahl wearing sunglasses, a combat uniform, and
helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protecti ...
. He described his place of birth, deployment to Afghanistan, and subsequent capture and made several statements regarding his humane treatment by his captors, contrasting this to the abuses suffered by insurgents in prisons. He finished by stating that the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
should not be involved in Afghanistan and that its presence there was akin to the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
. The Taliban originally demanded the release of six Taliban prisoners. After Taliban commander Awal Gul died of a heart attack at Guantanamo Bay on February 2, 2011, the demand was reduced to five Taliban prisoners. On April 7, 2010, the Taliban released a third video depicting Bergdahl, pleading for the release of Afghan prisoners held at Guantanamo and
Bagram Bagram (; Pashto/) is a town and seat in Bagram District in Parwan Province of Afghanistan, about 60 kilometers north of the capital Kabul. It is the site of an ancient city located at the junction of the Ghorband and Panjshir Valley, near t ...
. In November 2010, Bergdahl appeared briefly in a fourth video. In May 2011, Bergdahl appeared briefly in a fifth video. In June 2010, Bergdahl managed to escape his captors but was recaptured after less than nine days. In August 2010, it was reported that a Taliban commander named Haji Nadeem had claimed that Bergdahl was helping to train the Taliban in bomb-making and infantry tactics. The Pentagon dismissed the reports as Taliban propaganda. In June 2013, Bergdahl's parents received a letter from him through the
Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...
. In January 2014, the United States received another proof-of-life video dated December 14, 2013, in which Bergdahl mentioned the death of
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
n former president
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
, indicating the video had been recorded after December 5. In early 2014, it was suggested in some media that the United States government had attempted to secure the release of Bergdahl by paying a
ransom Ransom refers to the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release. It also refers to the sum of money paid by the other party to secure a captive's freedom. When ransom means "payment", the word ...
and that the intermediary had absconded with the money. The Pentagon said no ransom was paid but that a payment had been made for intelligence that led to Bergdahl's release.


Search efforts

After Bergdahl was confirmed as missing, the Army initiated a
DUSTWUN DUSTWUN (abbreviation for ''duty status—whereabouts unknown'') is a transitory casualty status assigned to United States service members who are believed to be involuntarily absent but cannot be located and have not been confirmed dead or captur ...
search to find him. According to soldiers from his platoon, there was an increase in attacks against US forces in Paktika Province following his disappearance. Significant resources were deployed in an effort to find Bergdahl. Two Pashto-language leaflets were distributed by the U.S. military in seeking Bergdahl. 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. According to soldiers involved in the effort to find Bergdahl, at least six soldiers from his battalion were killed during the search. Retired general Michael Flynn also blamed their deaths on the search for him. National Guard Master Sgt. Mark Allen was on a mission to gather information about Bergdahl from two Afghan villages in July 2009 when his unit was ambushed by insurgents using small arms, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Allen, who was shot in the head, was permanently disabled from the wound, leaving him unable to walk or speak. He died on October 12, 2019. Officers who served in Afghanistan during that time told CNN that diverting resources to find Bergdahl delayed the closing of Combat Outpost Keating, where eight American soldiers were killed on October 3, 2009, when 300 Taliban insurgents overran the base.


Torture in captivity

According to a senior U.S. official, Bergdahl told military officials that he had been tortured, beaten, and held in a cage by his captors after he tried to escape. He told medical officials that he was locked in a metal cage in total darkness for weeks at a time as punishment for trying to escape.


Release

On May 31, 2014, Bergdahl was released by his captors and recovered by
Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), also known as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as Task Force Green, is a Special operation forces, special operat ...
, a Special Mission Unit component of the Joint Special Operations Command in eastern
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
. The release was brokered with the Taliban by the American, Qatari, and Afghan governments, in exchange for five Guantanamo Bay detainees transferred to Qatari custody for at least one year. At 10:30 a.m. ( EDT) on May 31, 2014, Bergdahl was handed over by 18 Taliban members to a special operations team in eastern Afghanistan, near
Khost Khōst () is the capital of Khost Province in Afghanistan. It is the largest city in the southeastern part of the country, and also the largest in the region of Loya Paktia. To the south and east of Khost lie Waziristan and Kurram Agency, Kurram i ...
on the Pakistani border, in what was described as a "peaceful handover". A video of the handover was later released by the Taliban. Bergdahl was treated by U.S. military medical staff at an undisclosed base in eastern Afghanistan. He was then transferred to
Bagram Airfield Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Ministry of Defense (Afghanistan), Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient town ...
before being flown to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, for medical treatment. On June 13, 2014, he was flown by military plane to San Antonio, Texas, where he was taken to the Brooke Army Medical Center to complete his recovery and reintegration. The Taliban detainees – known as the " Taliban Five" – who were transferred from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to custody in
Doha Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...
, Qatar, are Mohammad Fazl, Khairullah Khairkhwa, Abdul Haq Wasiq, Norullah Noori, and Mohammad Nabi Omari. They were the Taliban army chief of staff, a Taliban deputy minister of intelligence, a former Taliban interior minister, and two other senior Taliban figures. Some Republican members of Congress have said that the prisoner swap that led to Bergdahl's release may have been illegal. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (NDAA) mandates that all prisoner transfers from Guantanamo Bay require 30 days' notice to Congress, which was not done in this case. When President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
signed the bill, he released a
signing statement A signing statement is a written pronouncement issued by the President of the United States upon the signing of a bill into law. They are usually printed in the Federal Register's '' Compilation of Presidential Documents'' and the '' United State ...
saying that the restriction interfered with the president's
executive power The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...
as commander-in-chief. The White House released a statement acknowledging that the release of the Guantanamo prisoners did not comply with the NDAA provision, but cited the president's signing statement and "unique and exigent circumstances" as justification.


Release efforts

For months, U.S. negotiators sought to arrange the transfer of five Taliban detainees held at
Guantanamo Bay detention camp The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GTMO ( ), GITMO ( ), or simply Guantanamo Bay, is a United States military prison within Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), on the coast of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. It was established in 2002 by p ...
to the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
state of
Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
. 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 A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
. That move – at the center of U.S. strategy for ending the long, costly conflict in Afghanistan – was supposed to lead directly to Bergdahl'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 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. Ultimately, the Obama administration agreed to the prisoner exchange, allowing Bergdahl to be released on May 31, 2014.


White House Rose Garden ceremony

On May 31, 2014, President Obama appeared with Bob and Jani Bergdahl in the White House Rose Garden where he spoke about the prisoner swap that resulted in the recovery of their son.


Return to duty

On July 13, 2014, it was reported that Bergdahl would return to duty at
Fort Sam Houston Fort Sam Houston is a United States Army, U.S. Army post in San Antonio, Texas. "Fort Sam Houston, TX • About Fort Sam Houston" (overview), US Army, 2007, webpageSH-Army. Known colloquially as "Fort Sam", it is named for the first president o ...
in
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
. This was confirmed by Army officials on July 14, with a spokeswoman saying that "He will now return to regular duty within the command where he can contribute to the mission." In 2015, he was serving as a clerk; however, the "military taboo surrounding desertion is such that he had to have a security detail to guard him from possible attacks from his fellow soldiers."


Debate over negotiations

Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee said he was "extremely troubled" and that "This fundamental shift in U.S. policy signals to terrorists around the world a greater incentive to take U.S. hostages". This sentiment was repeated by Congressmen Buck McKeon and James Inhofe, who released a joint statement saying that terrorists now have a "strong incentive" to capture more soldiers.
Ted Poe Lloyd Theodore Poe (born September 10, 1948) is an American politician who represented Texas's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2005 to 2019. Poe was the first Republican Party (United States), Republi ...
, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade, said the Bergdahl exchange appeared to violate the United States policy of not negotiating with terrorists.
Anderson Cooper Anderson Hays Cooper (born June 3, 1967) is an American broadcast journalist and political commentator who anchors the CNN news broadcast show ''Anderson Cooper 360°''. In addition to his duties at CNN, Cooper serves as a correspondent for ''6 ...
asked White House spokesman Jay Carney if it can "still be said that the United States does not negotiate with terrorists" to which Carney replied:
It can be... because when you put on the uniform of the United States and you go and fight on behalf of your country in a foreign land at war, and you're taken captive by the enemy, the principle that we don't leave our men and women behind doesn't have an asterisk attached to it depending on who's holding you.
Cooper followed up by asking "Even if it was a group like Al Qaeda, there would be negotiations with them?" to which Carney replied:
What I'm saying is he was a prisoner in an armed conflict, and we were engaged in an effort for five years to try to recover him. As an admiral said on TV today, he said when one of your shipmates goes overboard, you go get them. You don't ask whether he jumped or he was pushed or he fell. You go get him first and then you find out.
Secretary of Defense
Chuck Hagel Charles Timothy Hagel ( ; born October 4, 1946)Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine published an article stating that the Taliban are:
t really a 'terrorist' enemy as we commonly understand the word. The group is not on the State Department's official list of terrorist organizations and has long been a battlefield enemy in the ground war for control of Afghanistan. It is not plotting to, say, hijack American airplanes—even if it does have sympathies with people who are. Ditto the Taliban leaders released over the weekend.
''Time'' pointed out that the United States and other countries have "negotiated with terrorists" multiple times in previous years. In February 2014,
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
published an article discussing the possibility of releasing Bergdahl in exchange for the five Taliban, and concluded that "discussions about the release of Bergdahl with the Afghan Taliban are not directly with a terrorist organization per se, but instead with an insurgent group that has a terrorist wing". In August 2014, the
Government Accountability Office The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan government agency within the legislative branch that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. It is the s ...
published a report stating that the Pentagon broke the law when conducting the prisoner exchange because it failed to notify U.S. Congress in advance, as required by the law. National Security Advisor Susan Rice appeared on ABC News' ''This Week'' on June 1, 2014, several days after the exchange, saying Bergdahl "served the United States with honor and distinction." Following the announcement that Bergdahl was formally charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, much debate regarding the administration's handling of the negotiations resumed, centered on Rice's comment and then-State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki's statement in late March 2015 that the swap was "absolutely" worth it. In September 2014, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 249 to 163 (with 22 Democrats joining the Republican majority) to pass a nonbinding resolution condemning President Obama for failing to give Congress thirty days' notice before exchanging Bergdahl.


Court-martial, conviction, and vacation of conviction


Investigation, court-martial, and conviction

On June 16, 2014, the U.S. Army said that it had begun investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding the disappearance and capture of Bergdahl in Afghanistan. On June 25, 2014, the U.S. Army stated that there is "no evidence" that Bergdahl "engaged in any misconduct" during his years in captivity.
The 2010 Pentagon investigation referred to above dealt with events leading up to his capture. In July 2014, Bergdahl was returned to active duty. In August 2014, it was announced that an investigation headed by Major General Kenneth Dahl would be conducted. During the course of Dahl's inquiry, Bergdahl told investigators that he left his position in June 2009 to report on "misconduct in his unit" and that he had intended to return quickly. During a 59-day investigation, Dahl interviewed 57 witnesses, including Bergdahl.Robert A. Oppel Jr.
Bowe Bergdahl Should Not Be Imprisoned, Army Investigator Says
(September 18, 2015).
Ralph Ellis, Faith Karimi & Chris Lett,
Bowe Bergdahl investigation leader says GI should not face jail time
, CNN (September 21, 2015).
According to his lawyer, Eugene Fidell, Bergdahl told him that he "had concerns about certain conditions in the unit and things that happened in the unit and he figured that the only way to get any attention to them would be to get that information to a general officer." Fidell opined that Bergdahl was actually AWOL when he was captured, rather than a deserter. In December 2014, the Army referred Bergdahl's case to a four-star general for a possible court-martial. On March 25, 2015, the Army announced that Bergdahl had been charged with two counts under the
Uniform Code of Military Justice The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) is the foundation of the system of military justice of the armed forces of the United States. The UCMJ was established by the United States Congress in accordance with their constitutional authority ...
: one count of "desertion with intent to shirk important or hazardous duty" and one count of "misbehavior before the enemy by endangering the safety of a command, unit or place"; the second more serious misbehavior charge can be met with a life sentence. According to documents released by his defense team, Bergdahl was diagnosed with
schizotypal personality disorder Schizotypal personality disorder (StPD or SPD), also known as schizotypal disorder, is a cluster A personality disorder, cluster A personality disorder characterized by thought disorder, paranoia, a characteristic form of social anxiety, dereali ...
following an Army Sanity Board evaluation. On July 27, 2015, a memorandum from the sanity board stated "Though Sgt. Bergdahl did have a severe mental disease or defect at the time of the alleged criminal conduct, he was able to appreciate the nature and quality and wrongfulness of this conduct." In September 2015, following earlier postponements, an
Article 32 hearing An Article 32 hearing is a proceeding under the United States Uniform Code of Military Justice, similar to that of a preliminary hearing in civilian law. Its name is derived from UCMJ section VII ("Trial Procedure") Articl32(10 U.S.C. § 832), ...
(similar to a
preliminary hearing In common law jurisdictions, a preliminary hearing, preliminary examination, preliminary inquiry, evidentiary hearing or probable cause hearing is a proceeding, after a criminal complaint has been filed by the prosecutor, to determine whether the ...
in the civilian system) was held at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.Krishnadev Calamur
"The Case of Bowe Bergdahl: The Army sergeant will be in court for a preliminary hearing into whether he deserted his post in Afghanistan"
''The Atlantic'' (September 17, 2015).
At the hearing, Dahl testified that he found no evidence suggesting that Bergdahl was "sympathetic to the Taliban" or intended to desert. Dahl also testified that Bergdahl had "idealistic and unrealistic expectations" of people, identifying with
Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum; , 1905March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and philosopher. She is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system which s ...
's character of John Galt. Dahl testified that he had found no evidence that any soldiers had been killed while specifically engaged in the effort to retrieve Bergdahl. Dahl also testified that imprisonment would be an "inappropriate" penalty for Bergdahl. Lieutenant Colonel Mark Visger presided over the hearing and made a recommendation on whether Bergdahl should be court-martialed. In October 2015, Visger "recommended that the charges be referred to a special court-martial and that a punitive discharge and confinement would be inappropriate given all the circumstances." Visger's recommendation was reviewed by General Robert B. Abrams, the commander of United States Army Forces Command at
Fort Bragg, North Carolina Fort Bragg (formerly Fort Liberty from 2023–2025) is a United States Army, U.S. Army Military base, military installation located in North Carolina. It ranks among the largest military bases in the world by population, with more than 52,000 m ...
, the " convening authority" in Bergdahl's case.Luis Martinez
Officer in Bergdahl Hearing Recommends No Jail Time, His Lawyers Say
ABC News (October 10, 2015).
In December 2015, Abrams rejected the recommendation and ordered that Bergdahl face a general court-martial on the two charges. His trial was first set for February 2017. Regarding these charges, Bergdahl had sought a pardon from President Obama, which was not granted. In 2016, Bergdahl's case was the focus of Season2 of the podcast ''Serial''. On President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
's inauguration day, Bergdahl's lawyers sought to use the president's words to end the prosecution. Specifically, Trump had denounced Bergdahl during the presidential campaign as a "dirty rotten traitor". The defense attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the desertion and endangerment charges against Bergdahl, saying it was now impossible for him to get a fair trial. They contended that the effect of President Trump's statements violates a prohibition on
unlawful command influence Unlawful command influence (UCI) is a legal concept within American military law. UCI occurs when a person bearing "the mantle of command authority" uses or appears to use that authority to influence the outcome of military judicial proceedings. ...
, a legal concept in
military justice Military justice (or military law) is the body of laws and procedures governing members of the armed forces. Many nation-states have separate and distinct bodies of law that govern the conduct of members of their armed forces. Some states us ...
. Colonel Jeffery Nance, the military judge presiding over the case, declined to dismiss the case in February 2017; Bergdahl's appeal was denied by the U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals in March. His defense team then filed a third motion, again asking to dismiss the case over the comments from Trump. Bergdahl returned to court for a pre-trial hearing on May 5, 2017, where the judge said he intended to start jury selection on October 16, 2017. On August 21, it was announced that Bergdahl had rejected a trial by jury and chose instead a trial by military judge Colonel Nance. On October 16, 2017, Bergdahl, via his attorney, pleaded guilty to charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. His sentencing hearing was slated to take place on October 23. On October 23, Nance heard arguments to renew a motion to dismiss the court-martial, citing recent comments by President Trump on October 16. President Trump said that he couldn't comment on the case, and added, "but I think people have heard my comments in the past." Prosecutors claimed that Trump was merely trying to distance himself from his previous remarks about Bergdahl. Sentencing testimony began on October 25. On November 3, 2017, Nance accepted Bergdahl's guilty plea and sentenced him to be dishonorably discharged, reduced in rank, and fined $1,000 per month from his pay for ten months, with no prison time. The fine and reduction in rank were to take effect immediately, while the discharge was stayed pending automatic appeal. The judge did not give his reasons for the sentence, which was later reviewed by General Robert B. Abrams. As the final sentence included a punitive (dishonorable) discharge, it was reviewed by the
United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals In the United States military, the Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) is an appellate court that reviews certain court martial convictions of Army personnel. Jurisdiction In the United States, courts-martial are conducted under the Uniform ...
. After the sentencing, President Trump tweeted "The decision on Sergeant Bergdahl is a complete and total disgrace to our Country and to our Military." In June 2018, General Abrams approved the sentence. On August 28, 2020, his sentence was approved by the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.


Vacatur of conviction

In February 2021, Bergdahl filed a petition (a collateral attack) in the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a United States district court, federal district court in Washington, D.C. Along with the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and ...
to have the conviction and sentence expunged. On August 2, 2021, the Justice Department filed a motion to dismiss Bergdahl's petition. Sometime later in 2021, Bergdahl was discharged from the Army. In March 2023 Bergdahl received a partial win in the U.S. District Court case. Senior Judge Reggie Walton partially granted the government's motion to dismiss the case, but he rejected claims that comments from President Trump and Senator John McCain had influenced the military court-martial. On July 25, 2023, Judge Walton vacated the conviction. The ruling stated that Nance failing to disclose his application for a position at the Justice Department "could create the appearance of potential bias". On May 29, 2024, the Justice Department appealed Judge Walton’s decision to vacate the conviction. The case is currently at the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.


Military awards

As an infantryman who had engaged in combat with the enemy prior to his capture, Bergdahl was awarded the
Combat Infantryman Badge The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces (United States Army), Special Forces soldiers in the rank of Colonel (United States), colonel and below, wh ...
and a total of 10 overseas service bars for the five years he spent in the combat zone in Afghanistan. His awards and service ribbons include the Army Good Conduct Medal,
National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It was awarded to every member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served during any one of four s ...
, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terror Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, and the Overseas Service Ribbon. In January 2016, his military lawyer requested the Army award Bergdahl the
Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...
and the Prisoner of War Medal on the grounds that withholding the medals might prejudice and "cast a semblance of guilt" on Bergdahl as he awaited trial. After sentencing on November 3, 2017, his civilian attorney indicated that the defense team would still seek to have the Prisoner of War Medal issued to Bergdahl for the five years he spent in captivity.


References


External links


Finding Bergdahl
A five-part series on the search for Bergdahl in VICE magazine by Robert Young Pelton
Transcript of Bergdahl's Article 32 hearing

Serial Podcast
An 11 part series released in the winter of 2015/16 investigating the motives and circumstances of this case. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bergdahl, Bowe Robert 1986 births Living people United States Army personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) American prisoners of war American people of Norwegian descent American people of Swedish descent Foreign hostages in Afghanistan American people imprisoned in Afghanistan People from Hailey, Idaho People from Sun Valley, Idaho People with schizotypal personality disorder People convicted of desertion United States Army personnel who were court-martialed United States Army soldiers War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) prisoners of war Military personnel from Idaho Orthodox Presbyterian Church members Military personnel missing in action