The Strange Story of the American Soldier in Afghanistan
By Dr Syed Amir
Bethesda, MD
During the five-year captivity of Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, an American soldier, at the hands of the Taliban, his parents did what they thought would facilitate his release. His father, Robert Bergdahl, grew a long, unkempt beard aligning his outward appearance with that of his son’s captors, learned to speak Pashto and studied Islam in a gesture of empathy with them. These developments made some of his friends and neighbors in his home town of Hailey (population 8,000) in the western US state of Idaho wonder if he had clandestinely converted to radical Islam; in reality, he was only a desperate father valiantly trying to rescue his son.
The bizarre story of Bergdahl has been covered daily in the press. His capture and release have taken a number of twists and turns and much of the behind-the-scene information remains murky. It is believed that he was kept in the tribal area of North Waziristan in Pakistan by the Haqqani network of terrorists. His release in exchange for five senior Taliban commanders was announced by President Obama on May 31, amidst much fanfare, in a grandiose White House ceremony. The five had been in custody at the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for well over a decade and were considered by the US intelligence agencies among the most dangerous militants. Bergdahl was released near the Pakistan border, and whisked away aboard a US helicopter. His release provided one of the rare occasions wherein US military personnel interacted face to face with Taliban fighters. The final deal was negotiated by the Emir of Qatar, whose incredibly wealthy country has maintained a working relationship with the Taliban, and has been involved in mediating a multitude of political and social disputes in the Middle East. The Taliban detainees were escorted from Guantanamo Bay to Doha and freed with the stipulation that they will not leave Qatar for at least a year.
The exact details of Bergdahl’s disappearance in Afghanistan’s Paktika province are still unknown. Apparently, he became disillusioned with the war, disappeared on the evening of June 30, 2009, without telling anybody, leaving behind his uniform and weapons. He had been somewhat of a free spirit during his military career; his carefree temperament not entirely consonant with the disciplined life expected of someone in the army. A military report completed two months after his disappearance confirmed that “he mostly likely walked away of his own free will from his outpost in the dark of night” taking advantage of poor discipline and lax security. Sometime afterwards, presumably, he was captured and taken to Pakistan’s tribal region, controlled by Haqqani network, and kept there until freed. He is reported to have been kept in a cage for months and tortured after several failed attempts to escape.
After gaining freedom, Bergdahl spent some time at the US military hospital in Germany, prior to arriving in the US, but unlike returning prisoners in the past, he had no welcoming committee waiting to receive him. In fact, the brief period of rejoicing that followed his release abruptly ended, degenerating into an acrimonious debate. Questions were raised whether he was indeed a hero or a military deserter deserving a court martial. Much of the controversy is driven by domestic partisan politics, with an eye on the forthcoming November elections for the US Congress. The Republican Party members along with some Democrats are excoriating the Obama administration for paying too high a price by releasing the most dangerous terrorists to secure the freedom of a single US soldier, who they now discredit as a deserter. They contend that the freed Taliban will soon rejoin the ranks of fighters, creating a problem for both Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, such a scenario appears unlikely, since the five have endured a long period of incarceration, grown old and been out of the fighting business for well over a decade. Their release has been vigorously defended by the Obama administration, invoking the military’s long-established doctrine of never leaving any soldier behind in enemy hands.
The Republicans are hoping to make the asymmetric prisoner exchange a major political issue, and to use it to gain support in the coming elections. At stake is the control of the Senate. The current Senate has a narrow eight-member Democratic majority, and the loss of a few seats could shift the balance in favor of the Republicans. If they gain a majority in the Senate, it will become very difficult for Obama to get any part of his legislative agenda passed, significantly impairing his power and authority to govern during his second term.
The seamless and successful prisoner exchange has raised speculations that the Afghan Taliban may be moderating their behavior and moving towards peaceful, rather than violent, means to achieve their objectives, and that it may be possible to reach some political resolution of the long festering, bloody war. The optimism was bolstered by the statement issued on June 6 from Doha by the five released commanders, affirming their commitment to fully abide by the agreement.
But the road to peace and reconciliation will not be easy. The Afghan Taliban comprise disparate factions, some of whom are wedded to perpetual war, militancy and terrorism and have vowed to derail the democratic process. On June 6, two suicide bombers struck the convoy of Dr Abdullah in Kabul while he was leaving a campaign rally. Although he was unhurt, seven others in his party lost their lives. If Bergdahl’s release builds confidence and indirectly opens new avenues leading to reconciliation between the Taliban and the new elected Government of Afghanistan, it would be a blessing for a badly battered and war-weary people, reeling under decades of relentless strife and conflict
Unlike the Afghan Taliban whose power has been declining, that of their Pakistani counterparts (TTP), with some support from politicians, has been on the ascendency. Based in North Waziristan, they have proven to be vicious terrorists, killing and maiming thousands of soldiers and innocent civilians. Their ultimate objective is the destruction of the modern nation state, and replacement of its constitution with their version of Sharia, similar to what we observed in Afghanistan and Swat. Now Pakistan’s armed forces have at long last launched the operation to finally eradicate this menace. There are reports that the US had earlier considered an attack plan against the terrorists to rescue Bergdahl, but abandoned it for it was considered too risky for his safety. Pakistan has a much better justification for undertaking the military action and also has adequate means to achieve its objectives, provided the politicians permit it to succeed.
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