(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) After nearly five years in captivity, the only American prisoner of war held by the Taliban has been freed, the White House announced on Saturday. The deal, mediated by Qatar, involves the exchange of five Afghan prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay facility for 28-year-old US Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, who is believed to have been held by the Haqqani Network, an offshoot of Taliban. The five Guantanamo detainees are being handed over to Qatari authorities.
"For his assistance in helping to secure our soldier's return, I extend my deepest appreciation to the Amir of Qatar (Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani)," said President Barack Obama. "The Amir's personal commitment to this effort is a testament to the partnership between our two countries," he said in a White House statement.
The prisoner swap highlights the strength of the US-Qatar relationship, one that Secretary of State John Kerry has described as "vital" in his own statement on Bergdahl's release. In a statement from the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel stressed that the US "has coordinated closely with Qatar to ensure that security measures are in place and the national security of the United States will not be compromised." "I appreciate the efforts of the Amir of Qatar to put these measures in place, and I want to thank him for his instrumental role in facilitating the return of Sergeant Bergdahl," he added.
The Obama Administration also thanked the Afghan government for its support of efforts to free the soldier, who was handed over to the US on the Pakistani border Saturday evening local time. In a phone call to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Kerry said the US "will continue to support steps that improve the climate for conversations between Afghans about how to end the bloodshed in their country through an Afghan-led reconciliation process." Some two dozen U.S. defense and intelligence officials had been working on Bergdahl's case. He was said to be in good health and able to walk on his own.
"Sergeant Bergdahl's recovery is a reminder of America's unwavering commitment to leave no man or woman in uniform behind on the battlefield," said Obama. "And as we find relief in Bowe's recovery, our thoughts and prayers are with those other Americans whose release we continue to pursue," he added. Bergdahl's case is not without controversy. In 2012, Rolling Stone magazine published a series of quotes reported to be from emails Bergdahl had written his family. He claimed he had lost faith in the military's mission and was "ashamed to be American." While it remains unclear whether or not he deserted the mission, the five-year prison term handed to deserters may be considered time served for Bergdahl, as he spent them in captivity. Congress never passed an official declaration of war for the Afghan mission, so the death penalty would not apply.
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