Northwest News Network

A Timeline Of Bowe Bergdahl's 5 Years In Captivity

00000176-d8fc-dce8-adff-faff728f0003Bowe Bergdahl was born on March 28, 1986 to Bob and Jani Bergdahl in Sun Valley, Idaho. Bowe was raised in neighboring Hailey, Idaho, where his parents still live.On June 30, 2009, then 23-year-old Bowe Bergdahl is widely reported to have walked off his Army base in Afghanistan. Less than a month later, the Washington Post reports, Bergdahl appeared in the first of several Taliban-affiliated videos. In it, Bergdahl "says he was captured after lagging behind during a patrol," writes the Post.Here's a timeline of events.May 2008: Bergdahl enlists in the U.S. ArmyJune 30, 2009: Bergdahl reported missingJuly 2, 2009: CNN reports a U.S. military official says Bergdahl is being held by the clan of warlord Siraj Haqqani.July 18, 2009: The Taliban posts a video of Bergdahl.Dec. 25, 2009: Bergdahl's captor's release a second video of the solider.April 7, 2010: The Washington Post reports that the Taliban "posts a video showing Bergdahl pleading to be sent home and saying the war in Afghanistan is not worth the human cost."June 2010: The U.S. Army promotes Bergdahl to specialist.Dec. 7, 2010: CNN reports Bergdahl's captors release a 45-minute video showing a thinner soldier.Feb. 2011: Bergdahl's captors release another video.May 6, 2011: Bergdahl's father, Bob, posts a YouTube video asking for his son's release.June 16, 2011: The U.S. Army promotes Bergdahl to sergeant.May 9, 2012: Bob and Jani Bergdahl give an interview to the New York Times. The Bergdahls say the U.S. government is engaged in secret negotiations with the Taliban over a possible prisoner swap.June 6, 2013: Bergdahl’s family announces that “through the International Committee of the Red Cross, we recently received a letter we’re confident was written to us by our son.”Jan. 15, 2014: Bergdahl's captors release a proof-of-life video. Still unreleased publicly, the video reportedly shows Bergdahl in declining health.Feb. 23, 2014: The Taliban says it suspended prisoner-swap talks with the United States government.April 24, 2014: The U.S. government says prisoner-swap talks aren't disorganized. May 31, 2014: The U.S. government announces Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was released by his captors in exchange for five U.S. detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.March 25, 2015: Following a U.S. Military investigation, the Army announced Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will be charged with desertion, avoiding military service, and misbehavior before the enemy.This information was compiled from various media reports including The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, The Associated Press, Northwest News Network.

Military Says Efforts To Bring Idaho POW Home Not Disorganized

NWNews | By Jessica Robinson,

Jessica Robinson

Published April 24, 2014 at 5:29 PM MDT

A video released by the Taliban in 2010 shows a man believed to be Bowe Bergdahl.

There is mixed news this week on the fate of American prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl. The Associated Press is reporting efforts to bring home the Northwest soldier are in disarray.

The military says that just isn’t true.

Bowe Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban in southeast Afghanistan nearly five years ago.

The Associated Press reports the rescue effort is now spread across multiple military, diplomatic and intelligence agencies who aren’t communicating with each other. The report claims that coordination is so poor that when a “proof of life” video of Sgt. Bergdahl was obtained in December, it wasn't clear who should tell Bergdahl's family in Hailey, Idaho.

U.S. Central Command swiftly disputed that story. Military officials say there is close coordination between agencies and the government is using all tools available to secure Bergdahl's release.

For supporters of the 28-year-old Army sergeant, the conflicting reports did at least indicate a sense of urgency.

“And it gives me a lot of hope that we are working to get Bowe home as soon as possible,” says Stefanie O'Neill, a friend of the Bergdahl family in Hailey.

The disputed report by the AP also says the Taliban is anxious to make a deal that would release Bergdahl. It's likely that deal would involve exchanging Bergdahl for Guantanamo Bay detainees.

Bergdahl’s supporters are holding an event in his hometown on June 28 to mark the anniversary of his capture. Organizers will plant a tree in a Hailey park marking Bergdahl’s fifth year in captivity, unless he’s home by then.

Military Says Efforts To Bring Idaho POW Home Not Disorganized

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