(Reuters) — The U.S. soldier freed from nearly five years in captivity in Afghanistan, Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, needs patience and time to heal from his harrowing ordeal, his parents told a news conference in Boise, Idaho on Sunday (June 1).
Bergdahl was released on Saturday (May 31) in an exchange deal in which five Talibanprisoners were freed from Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba and flown to Qatar.
Bergdahl’s parents, Bob and Jani Bergdahl, said they have not yet spoken to their son and couldn’t wait to welcome him home.
“Five years is a seemingly endless long time, but you made it. I imagine you’re more patient and compassionate than ever. You are free, freedom is yours. I will see you soon my beloved son. I love you Bowe,” Jani Bergdahl said, directly addressing her son.
“I’m so proud of your patience and your perseverance. I’m so proud of your cultural abilities to adapt, your language skills, your desire and your action to serve this country in a very difficult long war. But most of all, I’m proud of how much you wanted to help the Afghan people and what you were willing to do to go to that length,” Bob Bergdahl, Bowe’s father, said.
Bowe Bergdahl, 28, was handed over at about 6 p.m. local time on Saturday to U.S. forces who had flown in by helicopter. The Afghan Taliban said they had released Bergdahl near the border with Pakistan in eastern Afghanistan.
He arrived at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany on Sunday. After receiving care Bergdahl would be transferred to another military medical facility in San Antonio, Texas, U.S. defense officials said, without giving a date for his return to the United States.
